Augusta defendant convicted in 2019 killing of elderly man

AUGUSTA, Ga. (WRDW/WAGT) – The killer responsible for a May 2019 murder of an elderly man was convicted at trial, according to District Attorney Jared Williams.

Defendant Samuel Brown, 63, of Augusta, was found guilty of the killing of Roosevelt “Pop” Bland.

When Pop refused to give him money for drugs and prostitutes, the defendant hit him in the head with a cast iron pan and strangled him with a cord, according to authorities.

After three days of trial, he was sentenced Wednesday afternoon by Judge Amanda Heath to life without parole.

Assistant District Attorney Dre’Kevius Huff tried this case with the assistance of co-counsel Julian Rheams.

The two pointed out to the jury the manner of killing this elderly victim.

The defendant struck Bland in the head with the skillet, then wrapped an electrical cord around his neck nine times to strangle him, according to prosecutors.

After the murder, he stole Bland’s truck and ditched it in Brunswick before catching a bus to Jacksonville, Fla., where he would eventually turn himself in.

The day leading up to the murder, the defendant accompanied Bland to the bank and saw him withdraw money.

Late that night, the defendant asked for cash and Bland told him no.

After the murder, the defendant used Bland’s money to buy drugs and seek the company of a prostitute, according to prosecutors.

After turning himself in to authorities, he claimed to have been in a blind rage with lost memory of the events, according to prosecutors.

Four years later, he told a new story at trial. Weeping on the stand and pretending to have love for the victim, the defendant claimed he only killed Bland because Bland pointed a gun at him.

The jury returned a verdict of guilty on malice murder and felony murder less than an hour after deliberations began.

Bland would have turned 81 ythis week, Williams noted after the trial.

“Eighty-one years of wisdom, guidance, and love, all lost to senseless violence,” Williams said. “These killings must stop, and we will not stop until they do.”

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