On November 12, 2018, 34-year-old Brandon Shawn McHan, owner of Wise Buck Pawn Shop in Pine Bluff, Arkansas, was fatally shot during an attempted robbery at his establishment. The assailants, later identified as Daryl Strickland Jr. and Rodney Henry, both 21 at the time, approached the store after closing hours. When McHan informed them through the locked door that the shop was closed, the men initially appeared to leave. However, as McHan and an employee, Jason Booth, exited briefly to start their vehicles, Strickland and Henry forced their way into the store, initiating a violent confrontation. Strickland fired multiple shots, striking both McHan and Booth. Despite attempts to defend themselves, McHan succumbed to his injuries, while Booth survived a gunshot wound to the face.
Following the murder, Strickland and Henry continued their crime spree by robbing a nearby gas station at gunpoint approximately an hour later. Their apprehension came on December 4, 2018, after forensic evidence linked shell casings from the crime scenes to a residence associated with the suspects. Both men were arrested in Camden, Arkansas, and faced multiple charges, including capital murder, attempted capital murder, aggravated robbery, and theft.
In October 2019, a federal grand jury indicted Strickland and Henry on charges related to the attempted robbery and murder of McHan, as well as the subsequent gas station robbery. They pleaded guilty to discharging a firearm in furtherance of a crime of violence resulting in murder. On June 20, 2023, both were sentenced to life imprisonment without the possibility of parole. The sentencing brought a measure of closure to McHan's family and the Pine Bluff community, who had mourned the loss of a beloved local businessman and sought justice for his untimely death.
