In the early morning hours of November 3, 1991, Christopher Lamont Bender, a 19-year-old Black / African American male R&B singer with a promising career, was shot and killed in his hometown of Brockton, Massachusetts. He was sitting in his blue Mercedes-Benz outside the Crescent Court housing project, where his mother lived, with his 17-year-old cousin, Jesse Starks, in the passenger seat.
The two were talking and smoking marijuana when they were ambushed.
At approximately 2:17 a.m., three hooded men approached the vehicle and unleashed a barrage of gunfire, firing 21 shots into the car. In a final act of bravery, Bender shielded his cousin with his own body. Starks emerged from the attack unharmed, but Bender was struck by four bullets in his back and one in his elbow. He was rushed to a local hospital where he ultimately succumbed to his injuries. His life and burgeoning music career were tragically cut short.
The investigation into the murder revealed that the shooting was the culmination of a dispute. Two weeks prior to the killing, Bender had been involved in an argument with a man named Stephen "Sticks" Fernandes. A week later, Fernandes threatened both Bender and his cousin. On the night of the murder, Fernandes and a group of associates armed themselves and went searching for Bender.
The subsequent police investigation led to the arrests of several individuals. Eroy Kindell was convicted of second-degree murder and was released on parole in 2008. Stephen "Sticks" Fernandes was convicted of first-degree murder and sentenced to life in prison without the possibility of parole. Another man, Timothy Lucas, was also convicted of second-degree murder for his role in the shooting. Court documents indicate that a total of seven individuals were involved and faced various charges, with three being convicted of first-degree murder and three others, including Lucas and Kindell, being convicted of second-degree murder. One individual was convicted as an accessory after the fact.
