On July 24, 2014, the life of 19-year-old male Brandon Gonzalez was cut short in a violent incident within the Carondelet neighborhood of St. Louis, Missouri. The events unfolded in the early morning hours inside a vacant residence located in the 7300 block of Vermont Avenue. According to investigators, Gonzalez was present at the location for a narcotics transaction which abruptly escalated when the other parties involved initiated a robbery.
During the ensuing altercation, gunfire erupted, striking Gonzalez in the chest and neck. He was transported to a local hospital but succumbed to his injuries and was pronounced dead.
The violence that claimed Gonzalez's life also resulted in severe injuries to a 21-year-old man who was with him at the time. This second victim was also shot in the chest and neck but survived the attack, initially listed in serious but stable condition. A third individual, another 19-year-old male, was present during the chaotic scene but managed to escape physically physically unharmed. Witnesses and surviving victims later recounted to authorities that a group of individuals had orchestrated the robbery under the guise of the drug deal.
Homicide detectives with the St. Louis Metropolitan Police Department launched an investigation that quickly led to the identification of multiple suspects. Authorities alleged that the robbery was carried out by a group that included at least six individuals. Two teenagers were specifically identified and apprehended in the days following the murder. Samuel Vazquez-Gonzales, who was 18 years old at the time of the crime, was arrested and faced a litany of serious charges, including first-degree murder, assault, and robbery.
A second suspect, 17-year-old Terence McKinney, was also taken into custody and charged in connection with the deadly shooting. McKinney faced charges including second-degree murder, first-degree assault, and armed criminal action. As the legal proceedings moved forward, McKinney eventually appeared in court to answer for his role in the slaying. In January 2016, a judge sentenced McKinney to serve 15 years in prison for his involvement in the death of Brandon Gonzalez and the assault on the surviving victim.
