FORT LAUDERDALE, Fla. – It took a day and a half of deliberations for a jury to find both Richard Andres and Jonathan Gordon guilty of first-degree murder and guilty of burglary following the fatal shooting of 51-year-old Ivan Brandt.
Closing arguments began earlier this week after 7 years since the defendants were arrested on murder charges.
State prosecutors showed home surveillance video from February of 2015 when they said the men went to Brandt’s home intending to rob him armed with a knife, gun, and zip ties because they believed he was wealthy. The jury came back on Thursday and asked to view that video again.
Gordon argued robbery was not the motive and claimed that Brandt’s ex-girlfriend told them that her dog and a bag with personal belongings were inside the home and that is what they arrived to retrieve.
What they didn’t expect was for the victim to fight back.
Police said that’s when Gordon’s gun had fallen to the floor, and during a struggle with Brandt, it was Andres who is seen picking it up and shooting Brandt twice.
The verdict is closure for a family who has been seeking justice for their loved one whose life they say was stripped away.
“He had a son. He had so much he wanted to do,” said Sandra Brandt, mother of the victim. “These two fellas came in in broad daylight . . .. they took a great guy who paid it forward every single day. For what? They got nothing.”
Next is the sentencing phase which is scheduled for Sept. 13.
In Florida, both men could face the death penalty.