Three men were indicted Tuesday for allegedly killing two brothers within one week in Baltimore in January 2020, according to state prosecutors.
Maryland Attorney General Brian Frosh said in a news release that Christopher Brown, 21, Daran Horton, 22, and Jimmy Murphy, 27, are charged with first-degree murder and firearm offenses. Investigators are searching for Horton, who prosecutors described as a fugitive.
“Two more young men have been murdered. The indictments charge three other young men, Mr. Brown, Mr. Horton and Mr. Murphy with homicide in retaliation for a beef about drugs,” Frosh said in a news release. “It is tragic to witness the likely waste of 5 young lives due to gun violence, but we are grateful to the hard work of our law enforcement partners that led to these indictments and who protect our communities at risk to themselves.”
Prosecutors say Cordelle Bruce was shot and killed in the 1100 block of E. Belvedere Ave. in the Glen Oaks neighborhood in North Baltimore on Jan. 14, 2020. His brother, Cornelius Bruce, was found six days later in a burning car in the 2800 block of St. Lo Drive in Clifton Park in Northeast Baltimore.
Cordelle Bruce was at the Alameda Shopping Center with Brown and Horton when the group got into an argument about a botched marijuana sale. Shortly after leaving the shopping center, prosecutors said, an unnamed individual shot and killed Cordelle.
In the following days, prosecutors said, Cornelius Bruce, Murphy and an unknown person sought revenge. Prosecutors said they conducted a retaliatory shooting that left Cornelius dead from Murphy shooting him.
Murphy then set the car on fire with the body inside in an attempt to cover up the shooting, prosecutors said.
The Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives is offering a $5,000 reward for information that leads to the arrest of Horton. Anyone with information is asked to contact ATF at 888-ATF-TIPS or ATFtips@atf.gov. He is a Black man with black hair and brown eyes. He weighs about 200 pounds and is about 5 feet 5. He is known to frequent the Alameda Shopping Center.
