Gene Siler was a 46-year-old golf professional and the PGA Director of Golf at Pinetree Country Club in Kennesaw, Georgia. shot dead In a senseless crime on July 3, 2021.
The Purdue University graduate’s birthday was just four days away and he is survived by his wife Ashley Siler, two sons Beau and Banks, parents and sisters.
While working on the golf course over the July 4th weekend, Siler noticed a white pickup truck drive onto the country club’s 10th green and end up hanging over the edge of a sand trap. According to authorities, Siler discovered the “crime in progress” and was killed by Brian Rhoden, who was 23 at the time.
Police say the Georgia golf pro was shot at the crime scene.
Jean Siler was 46 years old at the time of his death. (Jean Siller)
During an interview in August 2021, Siler’s wife told WSB-TV, “Gene didn’t want us to cry or be sad or mourn. He wanted us to celebrate him and do things for other people.”
According to Georgia PGA The website states, “Every Sunday you can find Gene playing a round of 18 holes with his sons” and that Siler “is well respected” and “has the biggest heart for all people and animals.”
Police They said they found two other bodies at the scene and identified them as Rhoden’s other victims, Henry Valdez, 46, and Paul Pearson, 76. According to WSB-TV, the men were Rhoden’s drug supplier and shipper.
Police said Siler and the golf course were not targeted by a criminal, but there was an active crime scene in Siler.
Rhoden was arrested by the Chamblee Police Department just hours after the murder. He was charged with kidnapping, malice murder, and felony murder with bodily injury, among other charges, and was being held in the Cobb County Jail at the time.
Georgia wife whose golf pro husband was shot and killed on court speaks out for first time: report
Brian Rhoden was charged with murder after killing three people at a golf course in Georgia in July 2021. (Fox 5 Atlanta)
While jailed and awaiting a September 2022 trial, Rhoden posted on Instagram and called her allegations “false.” According to Fox 5 Atlanta,
Rhoden pleaded not guilty at a hearing on Sept. 1 before Cobb County Superior Court Judge Robert Flournoy III, with District Attorney Flynn Brody present. Prior to the hearing, Brody announced his intention to file a lawsuit. capital punishment,
A warrant was issued for Justin Caleb Pruitt, who was listed as a “co-conspirator and accomplice.” He was arrested and charged with several counts, including murder and kidnapping with bodily injury. According to the Marietta Daily Journal, Rhoden and Pruitt were accused of binding Valdez and Pearson against their will with duct tape and zip ties.
Pruitt was previously indicted in 2019 along with 12 others by a South Carolina grand jury in connection with alleged cocaine trafficking and a cocaine trafficking conspiracy dating back to 2011.
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Rhoden was arrested on July 3, 2021, hours after the triple murder. (Cobb County Sheriff’s Office)
A third person, Georgia mother Taylor Nicole Cameron, who was 26 at the time, was arrested and charged with criminal attempt to tamper with evidence during the investigation. Triple murder case,
Authorities said messages between Cameron and Rhoden provided enough evidence to arrest Cameron for planning to travel to the golf course and retrieve weapons from there. murder weaponHe was arrested in early January 2022.
A plea agreement in February 2024 ensured life behind bars for Rhoden, who had received three consecutive life sentences without the possibility of parole.
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He pleaded guilty to all 17 charges against him on February 2, 2024. The charges include felony murder, malice murder, kidnapping with bodily injury, possession of a firearm during the commission of a felony, aggravated assault, and tampering with evidence.
After the three people were shot and killed, text messages proved Rhoden went out drinking with a female friend, according to WSB-TV.
During a court appearance in February 2024, Siler’s wife addressed her husband’s killer, asking, “Casamigos, huh? Is that the ‘I just killed three people’ cocktail?”
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Giving his statement to the court, Ashley said Rhoden was a “monster” and that his “lack of remorse is outrageous.”
The cases of Pruitt and Cameron are still pending.
