A Florida attorney, charged with the murder of his father after stealing $450,000 from his mother’s trust fund earlier this year, was found dead in his jail cell on Wednesday morning, the suspect’s attorney and the Palm Beach County Sheriff’s Office confirmed. Brandon Labiner, 34, reportedly died by suicide inside the Palm Beach County jail.
Labiner was found hanging inside his cell, his lawyer Val Rodriguez told WPTV. He was held in jail without bond since his arrest and charges were filed in the murder case of his father, Paul Labiner, 68, in July. He was initially arrested on a Broward County warrant related to driving under the influence.
Killed Father and Then Himself
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In October, Labiner was formally charged with first-degree murder with a firearm and tampering with or fabricating physical evidence through an indictment. Labiner was scheduled to appear in front of Circuit Court Judge Cymonie Rowe for a status check-in on November 28 in West Palm Beach, as per court documents.
While the authorities have not disclosed the identity of Labiner’s victim, a probable cause affidavit disclosed that a man’s body was found in a pool of blood within a Boca Raton parking garage, connected to the office building that housed Paul Labiner’s law firm.
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Surveillance footage from various locations was used to establish a connection between Brandon Labiner and the deadly shooting that occurred on July 1.
The footage showed the suspect driving around the vicinity of the building at 2 p.m.
The same person was then seen arriving at Paul Labiner’s office an hour later on a bicycle, carrying a drawstring bag. The person then removed a box containing a firearm.
The man in the video waited for approximately forty minutes until a second man appeared. The two engaged in a scuffle, moving out of view of the cameras, after which the first man fled the scene.
Murder for Money
A family member of the victim made the grim discovery, revealing that the body had sustained a gunshot wound to the head and upper chest, along with two gunshot wounds to the lower body, as reported by WPTV.
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A police investigation also found 9mm shell casings next to the victim’s body. Three more live bullets were found near the entrance to the walkway, and one live bullet was traced in a trash can in the parking garage.
In April, the Florida Bar suspended Brandon Labiner’s law license following a complaint filed by Paul Labiner. The complaint alleged that his son had embezzled $450,000 from his mother’s trust fund.
The father and son were business partners at the firm that Paul Labiner started in the 1980s until June of the previous year.
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At that time, Paul Labiner filed a civil suit against his son, alleging that Brandon Labiner’s subpar work performance resulted in the loss of business for the firm, and further accusing him of theft from the company.
