MIAMI—A Canadian diplomat’s son charged with murder watched attentively Wednesday as the prosecution methodically detailed the blood-soaked scene of a double killing in which his elder brother and another man were shot dead.
Among exhibits shown at the special bail hearing for Marc Wabafiyebazu was surveillance video showing the frantic 15-year-old surrendering to police shortly after the March 30 shooting, and photographs of the body of one of the victims.
Two rows behind, Wabafiyebazu’s mother Roxanne Dube, a veteran diplomat who was appointed Canada’s consul general to Miami late last year, sat quietly and with little expression as the proceedings unfolded.
Wabafiyebazu, of Ottawa, has pleaded not guilty to several charges, including felony first-degree murder, which could see him spend the rest of his days in a state known for its harsh punishment for violent crime.
While the prosecution does not allege he shot anyone, it does allege he and his 17-year-old brother Jean Wabafiyebazu had gone to rip off a drug dealer at an apartment rented by the second victim, Joshua Wright, who was also 17.
Court heard—and the video taken from a neighbour’s apartment shows—that Marc Wabafiyebazu waited in the passenger seat of his mother’s black BMW with diplomatic plates while his brother went inside the apartment.
Veteran homicide detective Rolando Garcia testified that the dealer, Anthony Rodriguez, 19, explained in a statement what happened.
Jean Wabafiyebazu asked to see the drugs and Rodriguez asked to see the money. The buyer showed a wad of cash, and the dealer went back outside to his car to retrieve the 800 grams of marijuana he had brought and handed it over.
“Aren’t you going to check it or test it,” Rodriguez asked, according to his statement.
At that point, Jean Wabafiyebazu reached into a green duffel bag he was carrying and pulled out a gun, court heard.
The unarmed Rodriguez went for the gun, managing to get behind Wabafiyebazu and put him in a headlock. Wright, who was watching, also pulled a gun.
“Jean fires, Joshua returns fire,” Garcia told prosecutor Marie Mato.
