'No remorse whatsoever': Wife watched as husband's childhood friend gunned him down while couple gave him ride home, police say

A 29-year-old antheral successful Georgia is accused of gunning down his longtime person successful beforehand of his woman aft the mates was giving him a thrust and helium touched the woman inappropriately, causing her to propulsion implicit and face him.

Brandon Dale Frick is presently facing 1 number each of malice murder, unauthorized discharge of a firearm, and possession of a firearm during the committee of a transgression successful the decease of 35-year-old Jacob Garrett Cothern, authorities announced.

According to a news release from the Waycross Police Department, officers responded astatine astir 8:22 p.m. connected March 13 to a reported shooting adjacent the intersection of Snelson Street and Old Brunel Street. When officers arrived, they located Cothern suffering from aggregate gunshot wounds. He was pronounced dormant astatine the scene.

Police said that portion responding to the area, officers encountered Frick a abbreviated region away. He was equipped and "attempting to flee" erstwhile officers took him into custody without incident. Frick was transported to the Ware County Jail, wherever helium was booked connected a complaint of murder.

Cothern's wife, Buffy Cothern, told Jacksonville, Florida-based NBC affiliate WTLV she was sitting successful the driver's spot erstwhile the shooting happened and has present travel guardant to picture the last moments of her husband's life.

She said the mates had been giving Frick — whom her hubby considered a puerility person — a thrust connected the nighttime of the shooting. During the drive, she alleged Frick touched her limb inappropriately, prompting her to propulsion implicit adjacent Snelson Street, conscionable extracurricular a church.

According to Buffy, her hubby told Frick to get retired of the conveyance and refused to instrumentality him location aft what she described arsenic disrespect toward her.

What happened next, she recounted successful detail:

"Brandon pulled a gun, changeable Jacob 1 time, and erstwhile I spot my hubby . . . helium fell to the ground, and Brandon is telling him, 'Get up and instrumentality maine home.' Jacob's holding a manus up: 'No, Brandon, delight stop. We don't person to bash it similar this.' When helium realized that Jacob couldn't get up…he changeable him again, and casually puts the weapon backmost and conscionable takes disconnected walking. Like nary remorse whatsoever."

Buffy Cothern described her hubby arsenic funny, outgoing, and "very loud," idiosyncratic who had worked hard to crook his beingness around. The mates joined successful 2024 and bonded implicit their shared committedness to betterment from addiction, she said.

According to Buffy Cothern, her hubby had been retired of incarceration for astir 2 years — longer than helium had been successful immoderate clip — and was making important strides, including securing a occupation with Waycross Public Works, earning aggregate promotions, and readying to enroll successful assemblage portion pursuing a commercialized driver's license.

"He provided maine the emotion and consistency that I've ne'er had before," she said.

Frick is being held without enslaved arsenic the probe continues. It was not instantly wide erstwhile helium was scheduled to look successful court.