FORT CARSON, Colo.—The Army filed murder charges against a Fort Carson soldier accused of killing his soldier-girlfriend during a Valentine's Day quarrel at a motel, officials said Friday.

Sgt. Montrell Lamar Anderson Mayo was charged with premeditated murder and murder in the death of Cpl. Kimberly Walker.

Walker, 28, of Cincinnati was stationed at Fort Riley, Kan. Friends of Mayo said the woman was visiting Mayo at the time she was killed.

Walker's body was found in an off-post motel in Colorado Springs, adjacent to Fort Carson.

Civilian prosecutors said they turned the case over to the Army at the Army's request. Fort Carson officials said the post has jurisdiction over alleged misconduct by its soldiers, and that military prosecution was appropriate because the victim was also a soldier.

Mayo, 24, is from Greenville, S.C., and is stationed at Fort Carson. It was not immediately clear if he had an attorney.

If convicted, he could face a maximum sentence of life without parole, forfeiture of pay and a dishonorable discharge.