TOUGHTON, Mass. (TCN) — Two men have been detained and charged with murder in connection with the 2008 shooting deaths of two brothers.
The Taunton Daily Gazette reports that Stephen Fordham and Kaylan Scott were arrested June 27 following a lengthy investigation into the murders of 23-year-old Kevin Vargas and 21-year-old Shawn Vargas.
Fordham and Scott aren’t the only ones charged in connection with the Vargas brothers’ deaths. In May 2021, a man named Keith Cox pleaded guilty to armed robbery with murder, and four months later, a jury acquitted another co-conspirator of murder and other charges.
Investigators believe Shawn Vargas and Kevin Vargas were dealing marijuana to the suspects, but that reportedly led to the deadly robbery.
According to the Taunton Daily Gazette, Kevin Vargas and Shawn Vargas were found dead in their rented apartment in Taunton on February 24, 2008. Kevin Vargas's 2-year-old and 4-year-old sons were inside the apartment when the shooting occurred, but were not injured. Shawn Vargas' daughter was born a few months after his death.
WCVB-TV reported that Bristol County District Attorney Thomas Quinn thanked the Vargas family for their “patience over the past 16 years.”
Both suspects have pleaded not guilty and are being held without bail.
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