The double murder of Kevin and Phillip Brannon and the subsequent arrest of three men dominated the headlines last week. It is no longer on the front page but it is a story that continues to attract community attention. Part of that is because of the sheer ruthlessness of the murder, the brothers were hunted down and executed in front of their own home. But perhaps we are still talking about it because the Brannon murder struck a nerve in the heart of Belize's fragile social compact. You have three well to do young men from the north side accused of killing two black males from the southside. Keith Swift retraces how the murder changed the face of crime victims and perpetrators.
Keith Swift Reporting,
This Lincoln Continental riddled with bullet holes and splattered with blood is the car the Brannon brothers were in on Saturday night May 13th. Kevin, Basil, and Phillip were returning from the fully loaded concert at the City Center. They had a skirmish outside the center with Ricky Aguilar and Taedron Bennett. It should have been over but police believe it carried over into a car chase.
Basil Brannon,
[May 15th, 2006] "We went into the car, drove off as we usually do,
up the boulevard, down Penn Toad, and over the bridge. When we were over the bridge my brother said, he was the one driving, that a vehicle was following us. I told him. It was a geo tracker. I told him let's go on Cemetery Lane. When we turned onto Cemetery Lane, the tracker stopped at the lane we should've gone down to reach home. When that happened I told Kevin to give me his key for the house. I got the key. The tracker decided to come and I jumped the fence for the graveyard and started to run home to my mother's house. By the time I reached there and opened the door to grab our licensed gun and came out, the only thing I heard was his wife saying, 'please don't shoot me.' by the time she said that, the firing started. I saw the gun and when I was raising to shoot, I got shot."
Keith Swift,
How many bullets did you hear?
Basil Brannon, Shooting Victim
"Man I've never been to Vietnam but it was like that. That's how much bullets it was."
There were reportedly two gunmen and a hail of bullets from 9-millimeter guns. When it was over Phillip and Kevin were dead, basil was injured, and a fifth man Mervin Humes was seriously wounded.
It was a ruthless double murder and on Sunday morning the first suspect police hauled in was the concert's promoter James Busch. DJ Busch spent Sunday and Monday in police custody. He was charged for drug possession but the chief investigator, Assistant Superintendent of Police Chester Williams made it clear on Monday
that DJ Busch was being investigated for involvement in the Brannon double murder.
ASP Chester Williams,
[May 15th, 2006] "He is also detained pending investigations into the Brannon incident."
Keith Swift,
What do you believe his role to be in the incident?
ASP Chester Williams,
"I will not go into details."
By Tuesday morning we knew it was nothing more than a suspicion. After 48 hours in detention DJ Busch was released without being charged for the double murder. That evening in the presence of his attorney Kareem Musa, a sympathetic Busch read from a prepared statement.
DJ Busch,
[May 16th 2006] "I can say with all certainty that neither myself nor my vehicle was involved in the unfortunate incident that took the lives of the Brannon brothers. Since being detained on Sunday morning on a totally unrelated charge, my name, my career, my reputation fell victim to the sensationalism of our media."
And about the same time Busch was being released, businessman Said Perdomo was turning himself in. The investigation had shifted focus. Police were closing
in on Ricky Aguilar and those who were with him that night at the concert. Perdomo was one of them and so he surrendered.
Said Perdomo, Questioned About Murder
[May 17th 2006] "My phone was ringing off the hook so I just decided to come in. I made an appointment with Mr. Williams to come and I was accompanied by my lawyer. I had no involvement in the incident at all."
On Tuesday afternoon Perdomo was joined in the cellblock by his friends 27-year-old Joseph Kee and 25 year old Ricky Aguilar. Wednesday morning Perdomo was released. Aguilar and Kee weren't.
ASP Chester Williams, CIB Commander
[May 17th, 2006] "Yesterday Ricky Aguilar and Joseph Kee were both brought in by their attorney and since then they have been in custody. We have interviewed them and we have also interviewed other witnesses and through other witnesses
we have managed to gather sufficient evidence in order to levy charges upon Ricky Aguilar and Joseph Kee. Both persons have been charged with two counts of murder, two counts of attempted murder, four counts of conspiracy to commit murder, two counts of use of deadly means of harm. We are still looking for another person in relation to the murder of the Brannon brothers. We are trying to locate one Taedron Bennett and we have issued a warrant in the first instance for his arrest. So now we have sufficient evidence to be able to prepare a warrant for his arrest. So there will be a bulletin including poster with his photograph for the public to see in the event that anyone might have information as to where he may be."
Police couldn't find the third double murder suspect Taedron Bennett because the 24-year-old insurance salesman was in Cayo. He surrendered on Thursday morning and on Friday he joined his friends - Ricky Aguilar and Joseph Kee in jail.
There has been much speculation as to the motive of the Brannon slaying. What
would make these young men from fairly privileged backgrounds so determined to carry out a ruthless double execution? Puzzling, but that question is neither here nor there for ASP Williams.
ASP Chester Williams,
[May 17th, 2006] "Stupidity."
Keith Swift,
Stupidity?
ASP Chester Williams,
"I believe they are stupid yes to commit it."
And, for now, that one word stupidity, may be as close as we come to figuring out the mystery behind one night which ended and changed so many young lives.
Basil Brannon has since been released from the hospital. Mervin Humes is still recovering. Joseph Kee, Ricky Aguilar, and Taedron Bennett are tonight all supposed to be in the remand section of the Hattieville Prison. They are each facing two counts of murder, two counts of attempted murder, four counts of conspiracy to commit murder, two counts of dangerous harm and two counts of use of deadly means of harm. They reappear in court on June 16th.
