Richard Wilson
Background
Richard Augusta Wilson, also known by the nickname Fathead, is a Georgia murderer connected to a long pattern of violent crimes in the Atlanta area. He is most widely known for the 2014 kidnapping and execution-style murders of Jeronta Brown and Briana Brooks, a young engaged couple who were abducted during a ransom plot. Wilson had already been convicted in an earlier killing before the 2014 murders, and investigators also tied him to other violent deaths. Because several of the alleged cases were described by authorities as suspected or connected rather than fully adjudicated in court, the most reliable victim information includes the murders for which Wilson was convicted or publicly tied by law enforcement.
Early Violent Crime
Wilson's known criminal history included a deadly 1991 robbery in Atlanta. In that case, he and others were involved in robbing residents in the Bowen Homes housing project. During the robbery, 23-year-old Kenneth Martin tried to get away and was shot to death. Wilson later pleaded guilty to voluntary manslaughter and armed robbery. He received a 20-year sentence but served about 11 years before being released on parole.
The 2014 Kidnapping and Murders
The case that brought Wilson national attention happened on August 30, 2014. Jeronta Brown and his pregnant fiancée, Briana Brooks, had returned from a late-night food run with their young daughter and Jeronta's teenage sister. As they arrived at a home in Decatur, Georgia, two masked men confronted them. The assailants posed as law-enforcement officers, forced the couple into handcuffs, and abducted them.
The kidnappers believed the family had access to money and demanded a ransom of $150,000. Over the next several hours, the victims' family received terrifying calls while the couple remained captive. When the ransom was not paid, Brown and Brooks were taken to northwest Atlanta, handcuffed together, and shot in the head. Brown died at the scene. Brooks, who was seven months pregnant, was still alive when she was found. She was taken to the hospital, where doctors delivered her baby by emergency C-section. Brooks died on September 3, 2014.
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