Robert Earnest Rozier: From Gridiron to Murder
Early Life and Football Career
Robert Earnest Rozier Jr. was born on July 28, 1955, in Anchorage, Alaska. Raised in California, he attended Cordova High School in Rancho Cordova, where he excelled in athletics, particularly football. His prowess on the field led him to play college football at the University of California, Berkeley. In 1979, Rozier was drafted by the St. Louis Cardinals in the ninth round of the NFL Draft. However, his professional football career was short-lived, spanning only six games in the 1979 season.
Involvement with the Nation of Yahweh
After his brief stint in professional football, Rozier's life took a drastic turn. In the 1980s, he became involved with the Nation of Yahweh, a religious sect led by Yahweh ben Yahweh. The group, based in Miami, Florida, was known for its controversial teachings and practices. Rozier adopted the name "Neariah Israel" within the organization.
Crimes Committed
While a member of the Nation of Yahweh, Rozier participated in a series of violent crimes, primarily targeting individuals deemed as "white devils" or those opposing the group's objectives. His involvement in these crimes included multiple murders:
- April 1986: Rozier murdered two white men in Miami's Coconut Grove neighborhood. He followed a drunk white man to his apartment and killed him and his roommate with a twelve-inch Japanese knife.
- September 5, 1986: Rozier and another Brotherhood member killed the unconscious 61-year-old Raymond Kelly, who was parked in a bar parking lot; the two men cut off the victim's ear to show ben Yahweh, and when they lost it, returned to the body to cut off the other.
- September 20, 1986: Rozier and three other Yahwehs killed 45-year-old Cecil Branch (stabbing him 25 times) in retaliation for a previous confrontation.
- October 31, 1986: Anthony Brown (28) and Rudolph Broussard (37) were shot to death during efforts by the Nation of Yahweh to evict residents from an apartment complex they had purchased in Opa-locka, Florida. Rozier was charged with one count of first-degree murder in connection with these killings.
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