Georgia Hitchhiker Found Guilty of Killing Good Samaritan on Interstate
Robert Brandon Keller convicted on all ten counts; faces life behind bars for murder of Bruce Dupree, who stopped to offer him a ride along I-16.
Georgia Hitchhiker Found Guilty of Killing Good Samaritan on Interstate
A jury in Bulloch County delivered guilty verdicts on every charge Wednesday against a man who killed a driver who had stopped to help him along a Georgia highway.
Robert Brandon Keller was convicted on all ten counts after the panel deliberated for approximately one hour, WTOC reported.
The defendant now faces the harshest sentence available: two back-to-back life sentences with an extra 25 years tacked on.
In 2024, authorities found Bruce Dupree in the center divider of Interstate 16, covered in blood and waving desperately for assistance. Sheriff's deputies soon tracked down Keller at a fueling station close by, where his hands were still stained with blood. Keller admitted to consuming methamphetamine that night and claimed no memory of what transpired.
Judge Matthew Hube explained that Dupree had pulled over to give Keller a lift after seeing him thumbing for rides.
"Mr. Keller represented the worst of us," Hube remarked. "He took advantage of someone who was trying to help, and left a trail of wreckage in his wake."
Following his arrest, Keller inflicted severe injuries upon himself, removing both eyeballs and biting off a portion of his tongue. A sheriff's investigator told jurors that Keller confessed to the self-inflicted harm, explaining he hoped to secure placement in a medical correctional facility.
When given the opportunity to speak after the verdict, Keller told the court there was additional information he wished to share, but he lacked faith in the judicial process.
"I would like the ability to trust and to tell the truth, but this is not the setting in which I have the trust to do so," he stated.
Acting District Attorney Jillian Gibson, who prosecuted the case, expressed appreciation for the jury's service. "To be able to protect our community from a very dangerous individual, so we are very grateful for that," she said.
Dupree's niece, Mandy Moore, said the ruling provides some justice but cannot restore what was taken. "Bruce is gone and won't come back, and nothing can fix that, nothing can fill that void," Moore said. "The justice system prevailed; no other family will go through what we went through at the hands of this man."
Source: Google News MT — Crime (en)