A WITNESS who gave evidence in the trial of a Dallas cop who gunned down her black neighbour in his own apartment has been mysteriously shot dead. Joshua Brown was “targeted for death” in an “assassination” claims his family’s lawyer, who is refusing to rule out the police were somehow involved. The roofer was shot […]
A WITNESS who gave evidence in the trial of a Dallas cop who gunned down her black neighbour in his own apartment has been mysteriously shot dead.
Joshua Brown was “targeted for death” in an “assassination” claims his family’s lawyer, who is refusing to rule out the police were somehow involved.
The roofer was shot in the mouth and chest just two days after his crucial evidence helped convict Amber Guyger of the murder of Botham Jean.
The accountant was shot dead by cop Guyger as he sat in front of the TV in his own home eating ice cream, a court was told.
Now attorney S. Lee Merritt is looking into whether or not there is any police involvement in the cold-blooded killing of Brown – who lived just down the hallway from Jean when he was killed.
He told DailyMail.com: “It is a possibility. I don’t have any evidence other than the timing, but I am not ruling anything out.
“But what I do know is that Joshua was targeted. This was an assassination. He pulled into his parking lot and he was shot. The perpetrators fled. They didn’t steal anything from him.
“This is a kid who had no gang ties, there was no lover’s quarrel. He was an AirBnB host and roofer. All the usual suspects of crime, drugs and sex are simply not there.”
He said Brown was “a truly genuine soul that was loved deeply by his family and friends” adding “I will work to get to the bottom of his murder.”
The shooting happened in the parking lot of the Atera apartment complex, where he moved to after his neighbour was shot dead.
Dallas Police Chief Renee Hall said on Sunday: “There are no suspects or motives at this time.
“We are committed to solving this case and will work diligently to apprehend the individuals responsible for Brown’s death.”
Brown, 28, was taken to nearby Parkland Memorial Hospital following Friday night’s shooting, but died later from his injuries.
Locals revealed they heard multiple gunshots before seeing a silver sedan speeding away from the scene.
During his testimony in Guyger’s murder trial, Brown told the jury he had met with Botham Jean the day he was shot by the cop.
He described how he was in his flat down the hall when he heard the voices of two people who sounded like they were meeting by “surprise.”
The gunshots followed “right after,” he said.
Brown then revealed he saw Guyger come out of Mr Jean’s apartment into the hallway.
She was on the phone and “crying, explaining what happened, what she thought happened, saying she came in to the wrong apartment,” he said.
During his statement, Brown broke down in court and wiped away tears with his T-shirt.
Lawyer Merritt said Brown lived in constant fear of gun violence which was why he became so emotional on the stand.
“He said it could have been him,” Merritt said.
Merritt wrote on social media that the latest murder “underscores the reality of the black experience in America.”
“Brown lived in constant fear that he could be the next victim of gun violence, either state sanctioned or otherwise,” he wrote.
This has ‘HIT’ by ‘COP’ written all over it,’ wrote Twitter user DJW in reply to Merritt’s message.
In a high-profile trial which ended last week, off duty cop Guyger told how she had opened fire after mistakenly walking into the wrong apartment and thinking Jean was an intruder.
She had just come off a 13-hour shift on duty and claimed she was tired and drove to the wrong level of the parking lot.
The state had asked the jury to sentence her to a minimum of 28 years – the age her victim would be if he were still alive today.
However, she was eventually jailed for just 10 years after being convicted of murder.
