On a late summer evening in the Bronx, the life of 17-year-old Arnelle Branch was tragically cut short. On August 11, 2019, at approximately 11:42 p.m., police responded to 911 calls of shots fired near the Parkside Houses on White Plains Road. Upon arrival, officers discovered two young men with gunshot wounds. Arnelle Branch had sustained a fatal gunshot wound to his torso. Alongside him was 21-year-old Kevin Dillard, who had been shot in the neck.
Both victims were rushed by EMS to Jacobi Hospital, where they were pronounced deceased.
The investigation into the double homicide led police to identify 46-year-old Harry Behlin as the suspect. According to the investigation, an argument preceded the fatal shootings. Behlin allegedly shot Dillard in the neck and then shot Branch as he tried to flee into the Parkside Houses. At the time of the incident, Behlin was on parole for a 2014 drug sale conviction and had previously served ten years in prison for attempted murder. Following the shooting, Behlin went on the run for eight months, and authorities believed he may have fled to New Jersey, Pennsylvania, or Ohio.
The search for Behlin came to an end on April 17, 2020, when U.S. Marshals apprehended him in Columbus, Ohio. He was extradited back to New York to face charges. In May 2020, a grand jury indicted Behlin on two counts of second-degree murder, two counts of second-degree manslaughter, and two counts of second-degree criminal possession of a weapon.
On October 10, 2023, a jury found Harry Behlin guilty for his role in the deaths of Arnelle Branch and Kevin Dillard. Subsequently, Behlin was sentenced to a term of 48 years to life in prison. The sentence consisted of 24 years to life for second-degree murder and a consecutive sentence of 24 years for first-degree manslaughter, in addition to a concurrent sentence for criminal possession of a weapon.
