Suspect held without bond in conspiracy to murder Pikesville man found dead in Frederick Co.
A 20-year-old man is charged with kidnapping, carjacking and conspiring to kill his aunt's estranged husband, according to Frederick County State's Attorney's Office.
On Monday, the agency announced an arrest was made in the murder of Brice Boots, 66, who was found dead inside an abandoned vehicle in a Walkersville field back in January.
Keon Wilson-Hawkins, 20, was arrested and charged after a warrant was executed in Baltimore this week.
Court records show the murder happened during a pending divorce filed by Boots in August 2022.
During the next-of-kin notification process earlier this year, detectives learned from the victim's neighbors in Pikesville that Boots' estranged wife, Frances Hamilton, was at the home the evening before his body was discovered with her nephew, Wilson-Hawkins, according to prosecutors.
A search inside Boots' home showed signs of a struggle that indicated he was forcibly abducted, investigators said.
Detectives examined cell phone records for the victim, Hamilton and Wilson-Hawkins, which revealed a digital footprint of their movements from the Pikesville home to Crum Road in Frederick County, prosecutors said.
Detectives said Hamilton died by suspected suicide more than a month after her estranged husband's body was found.
Wilson-Hawkins was indicted by a grand jury last week.
A Frederick County judge ordered the suspect to be held without bond on Tuesday.
Neighbors in the close-knit community where Boots lived for decades said his love for music, the Baltimore Ravens and his thoughtfulness will be missed.
"We're just so very sad and still, every time we look at the house, every time we drive by... It's a daily, constant reminder that he's not with us," a neighbor said.
