Lwidji Brun, a 32-year-old Black male, was in his Stamford, Connecticut, home on Ursula Place on the afternoon of May 18, 2021, with his girlfriend and their 2-year-old daughter. The quiet of the day was shattered when intruders forced their way into the residence. Brun was shot multiple times in the torso. Emergency services were called to the scene around 2:40 p.m.
First responders found Brun grievously wounded on his living room floor and immediately began CPR before rushing him to Stamford Hospital, where he ultimately succumbed to his injuries.
The Stamford Police Department's investigation into the homicide was extensive. Investigators canvassed the neighborhood and discovered numerous surveillance videos from businesses and residences. This footage proved crucial, allowing them to track the movements of three individuals for nearly two miles, from the city's South End to Brun's home. The suspects attempted to conceal their identities by wearing face masks and hoods, which stood out as the temperature was over 80 degrees that day. Security footage from Brun's own home captured two of the suspects running inside, followed shortly by the sound of three gunshots. The videos then showed all three fleeing the area and discarding their masks, which helped police to identify them. A critical piece of physical evidence, a pair of glasses left behind at the crime scene, contained DNA that was matched to one of the suspects.
Within weeks of the murder, authorities made arrests. On May 27, 2021, police took two Stamford residents, a 14-year-old and 16-year-old Rudi Reyna-Morales, into custody. The third suspect, 23-year-old Deandre Parsons, was later apprehended in Massachusetts by the United States Marshals Service. All three were charged with felony murder and home invasion. The 14-year-old, who had prior arrests for violent crimes, subsequently pleaded guilty to felony murder. Due to his age, his case remained in juvenile court. Reyna-Morales's case was transferred to the adult docket, and he and Parsons awaited further legal proceedings.
