Charging documents said that a day before the killings, the suspect, Jeffrey Allen Burnham, told his mother that he wanted to confront his brother "about the government poisoning people with COVID vaccines," and repeatedly said, "Brian knows something."
A Maryland man has been arrested in the alleged killing of three innocent people, including his pharmacist brother who authorities believe may have been linked to a false conspiracy theory about COVID-19 vaccines, according to The New York Times.
The suspect, identified as Jeffrey Allen Burnham, 46, had become convinced that his 58-year-old brother, Brian Robinette, was working with the government to poison people with the vaccines, according to charging documents filed by the police in Howard District Court and obtained by The Baltimore Sun.
Burnham was charged with three counts of first-degree murder in the deaths of Brian Robinette, 58, sister-in-law Kelly Sue Robinette, 57, and Rebecca Reynolds, 83, a longtime friend of the suspect's mother, according to the Allegany County Sheriff’s Office, the Sun reported.
On Tuesday, Burnham was extradited back to Maryland and he is being held without bond in Cumberland, Allegany County, according to the Sun.
When Inside Edition contacted the He is being represented by a public defender. There is no hearing at this time, according to The Allegany County told Inside Edition Digital that Burnham is being represented by a public defender and that there is no hearing at this time.
On Oct. 1, Burnham was captured by West Virginia State Police following an 18-hour manhunt, reported the Sun. Troopers checked on a suspicious vehicle in the area, according to a news release by the Cumberland Police Department.
Officials said the suspect was picked up at the Billy Motel & Bar in Davis, West Virginia. Burnham had reportedly flagged down a firefighter, and told him he “had been forced to kill three people,” the Sun reported.
West Virginia State Police took him into custody without incident, the Howard County Police said in a statement.
Investigators believe Reynolds, who had lived a few miles from Burnham, was killed sometime on Sept. 29, according to The New York Times. A neighbor of Reynolds discovered her body when he went to check on her and found her throat had been slashed and there was a pillow over her face, according to the Times. According to the police report, a vase and a cane had been knocked over, indicating there had been a struggle, the Times reported.
After the killing, Burnham stole Reyonolds' car then drove it to his brother's house, nearly 130 miles away, The Baltimore Sun reported.
On Sept. 30, police said they found Burnham’s brother with gunshot wounds in the foyer on the first floor and his sister-in-law in an upstairs bedroom in their home on Kerger Road in Ellicott City, according to WBAL-TV News. According to court papers, the couple was shot multiple times by a .40 caliber handgun. Police found an empty box for a .40 caliber Smith and Wesson handgun in the suspect's residence, WBAL reported.
After the killing of the couple, Burnham reportedly stole his brother’s red Corvette and fled, the Sun reported. Police later found Brian Robinette’s cellphone off the exit ramp of Route 100, headed to Interstate 95 north. An E-ZPass connected with the Corvette indicated that the car went through the toll plaza at the Baltimore Harbor Tunnel at about 8:30 a.m. Sept. 30, the charging documents said, WBAL reported.
Police said a tipster called the Maryland State Police and told them that at 4:45 p.m on Sept. 30, Burnham had driven to his home and asked for gas, according to The New York Times. The man told police that Burnham told him his "brother was killing people with the COVID 19 shot,” and said that he “would see him on TV,” the charging document said, the Times reported.
Detectives said that Burnham’s mother, Evelyn, had called the Cumberland police on Sept. 29, worried about her son’s mental health and his fears that the F.B.I. was after the two of them, the Times reported.
Investigators based the alleged motive on statements reportedly made by the suspect to his mother a day before the killing, according to the charging documents, WBAL reported.
The documents stated: “Jeffrey stated to Evelyn that he wanted to confront Brian about the government poisoning people with COVID vaccines and that he repeatedly stated, ‘Brian knows something,'” according to WBAL.
Evelyn, distraught over the gruesome tragedy said, “I’m sorry. I’m so, so sorry. I lost two boys and a friend and daughter-in-law,” the Sun previously reported.
Friends of the Robinette family have set up a GoFundMe page for their two children, who are young adults, Inside Edition has confirmed. As of Friday afternoon, Inside Edition confirmed more than 111,000 has been raised exceeding their initial goal of $100,00.
