On a tragic Sunday afternoon, February 24, 2008, the life of 23-year-old Caucasian male Kevin Vargas was violently cut short in his Taunton, Massachusetts, apartment. In a horrifying turn of events, Kevin and his younger brother, Shawn Vargas, who was 21, were both fatally shot. The double homicide unfolded in Kevin's apartment located at 729 Somerset Avenue, with his two young sons, aged just two and four, present in the room.
Miraculously, the children were physically unharmed.
For over sixteen years, the case remained a painful, unresolved chapter for the Vargas family. Investigators believed the brothers were victims of a setup, lured into what they thought was a marijuana deal that was actually an armed robbery. The perpetrators took the lives of two young men and left a family shattered, all while two toddlers witnessed the traumatic event. In the immediate aftermath, there were few answers and no arrests, leaving a void of justice for the grieving family.
Over the long years that followed, the investigation saw several turns. In 2016, authorities indicted two men, Keith Cox and Matthew Lander. However, a jury later acquitted Lander of the murder charges. In May 2021, Keith Cox pleaded guilty to manslaughter and armed robbery, but the family and investigators believed others were involved in the killings. The quest for full accountability continued, a testament to the persistence of law enforcement and the enduring hope of the Vargas family.
A significant breakthrough finally came in June 2024, more than 16 years after the murders. Following a lengthy grand jury investigation, two men, Steven Fordham, 38, of Taunton, and Kaylen Scott, 36, of Worcester, were arrested and indicted. Both men were charged with two counts of murder for the deaths of Kevin and Shawn Vargas. The arrests brought a renewed sense of hope for closure to a family that had waited so long for justice, marking a pivotal moment in the long and arduous investigation into the deaths of the two brothers. Both Fordham and Scott pleaded not guilty and are being held without bail.
