Fairfax, Va. ? A Virginia prosecutor charged sniper suspects John Allen Muhammad and 17-year-old John Lee Malvo with capital murder Wednesday in the killing of an FBI analyst, saying he believes he has sufficient evidence to go to trial immediately.

Muhammad and Malvo, who have been accused in 17 shootings in four states and Washington, D.C., were charged with murder in the Oct. 14 shooting of Linda Franklin in the parking deck of a Home Depot store. They also were charged with using a firearm in the commission of a felony.

Fairfax Commonwealth’s Atty. Robert F. Horan Jr. said he waited longer than other prosecutors to bring charges because he wanted to see the evidence in the case. He said his decision to act now is “because I was satisfied I had enough evidence to go to trial.”

It remained uncertain which jurisdiction will try the suspects first. Atty. Gen. John Ashcroft said Wednesday the decision would be made after a “fact-driven analysis” of where prosecutors have the best evidence and the best law to bring about the death penalty.

“I think it’s well-understood on my part that I believe appropriate penalties for the kinds of atrocities that have been committed to include the ultimate sanction of the death penalty,” Ashcroft told reporters.

The two men have been accused of killing 12 people and wounding five in Alabama, Louisiana, Maryland, Virginia and Washington, D.C. Muhammad was indicted in Fairfax County by a grand jury; Malvo was charged in a juvenile court petition, authorities said.

Investigations are pending into several other shootings, including one in Arizona.

The Washington Post reported Wednesday that law enforcement sources said a laptop computer seized from Muhammad’s car was stolen Sept. 5 in a robbery-shooting outside a pizzeria in Prince George’s County, Md. An employee was wounded.