A 28-year-old Baltimore man who prosecutors said shot his brother three times out of jealousy two years ago was convicted of first-degree murder this week.
A Baltimore Circuit Court jury on Wednesday found Brandon Wilder guilty of first-degree murder in the killing of his half-brother Ramon Wilder, 29, on May 9, 2014.
Prosecutors said Wilder used his girlfriend to arrange to meet his brother in the 3400 block of Wilkens Avenue, where he shot him three times, including once through the heart.
During opening statements, Assistant State's Attorney Sharon Ruth Holback said Brandon Wilder was jealous of his older brother, a successful drug-dealer who frequently wooed women away from the defendant.
Theodore Grice, an accomplice who was also on trial, was convicted of conspiracy to commit robbery and carjacking. Prosecutors said Grice and his girlfriend waited in another vehicle during the shooting. Prosecutors said Grice participated in the killing, and hoped to take over the victim's lucrative drug business.
Attorneys for Wilder and Grice did not respond to requests for comment Friday.
Prosecutors said Brandon Wilder's girlfriend and co-defendant testified that Wilder used her to lure the victim to the scene for a proposed sexual encounter. Prosecutors also played surveillance video of Grice and Wilder at a 7-Eleven following the killing, then another video that captured them cleaning out Ramon Wilder's truck and parking it at a hotel parking lot near Thurgood Marshall BWI Airport.
Police found the victim's truck in a hotel parking lot after receiving a tip.
"This was a senseless and cowardly act of violence," State's Attorney Marilyn Mosby said in a statement. "All too often we are seeing the unnecessary loss of life on our streets. Convictions like this are a reminder that my prosecutors are working diligently to get murderers off our streets and out of our communities."
Sentencing for Wilder and Grice is scheduled for Sept. 29.
twitter.com/janders5