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By
Stephanie Landaverde [former]
- July 14, 2023
Court
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Daily Stories
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Homicides
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Suspects
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Victims
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On July 13, a 31-year-old defendant convicted of murder in 2020 was sentenced to life in prison after his claim of self-defense against his deceased childhood friend was found unreasonable.
The prosecutor assigned to the case said the defendant, Epenetus Henriques, represented by Brandon Mead, failed to mention the loss of the victim, 34-year-old Isaiah Drummond, his childhood friend, within the letter he submitted to Baltimore City Circuit Court Judge Yolanda A. Tanner. According to the prosecutor, Henriques and Drummond had lived together in the same house, in which both of their children shared a room.
Mead explained that as a former football player, Henriques could have potential CTE, evidenced by his history of anger issues. He asked Judge Tanner to consider Henriques’ mental health issues before issuing him a sentence as he believed a suspended sentence and a mental health referral were most appropriate for the case. However, Judge Tanner pointed out that Henriques has been found competent.
Judge Tanner was not convinced that Henriques’ life sentence should be modified due to how Drummond’s body was weighed down by rocks in the river where he was found. Furthermore, Judge Tanner stated she found Henriques’ letter to the court to be singularly self-focused. She stated she was not sure how therapy would help since Henriques had not shown he took accountability for the situation nor demonstrated that he wants to improve himself.
“We called each other bro,” read the prosecutor from an email sent by one of Drummond’s family members.
“If he loved you, there was no question of what he would do for you,” wrote another one of Drummond’s family members, referring to how great of a father Drummond was and how his children lost a hero.
Judge Tanner stated that the case is “devastatingly sad for everyone involved” as she sentenced Henriques to life in prison for first-degree murder with credit for time served. Henriques will serve a concurrent three-year sentence for openly wearing and carrying a dangerous weapon.
According to court documents, suspicious activity was reported at Drummond’s residence on Feb. 8, 2020, leading to the discovery of a blood-stained steak knife and unopened bottles of bleach.
Henriques eventually confessed to stabbing Drummond in the neck and killing him on Jan. 23, 2020. Henriques led investigators to Cherry Hill Splash Park in Baltimore, Md., to a low- tide river where he had disposed of Drummond’s body.