U.S. marshals arrested a 31-year-old Auburn man Thursday morning in northwest Alabama after he was charged last week with second-degree murder, accused of throwing a punch that ended up killing a man after a concert at the White River Amphitheatre in August.
Devin McCurdy was booked into the Lawrence County Jail in Moulton, Ala., and a detective was flying there to interview him, said King County sheriff’s spokesperson Brandyn Hull.
McCurdy is believed to have fled the state after learning from media reports that 31-year-old Brandon Godsey had died from his injuries early on Aug. 28, soon after he was airlifted to Seattle’s Harborview Medical Center, charging papers say.
A large crowd was leaving the outdoor concert venue east of Auburn after a performance by New Orleans hip-hop duo $uicideboy$ on Aug. 27 when a King County sheriff’s sergeant and detective working security were flagged down just before 11 p.m., according to the charges. They were directed to an unconscious man, later identified as Godsey, who bystanders had placed on his side in the recovery position.
Thinking Godsey had overdosed, the sergeant administered naloxone and began CPR until medics arrived, the charges say. Godsey died around 1:30 a.m. at Harborview. He suffered skull fractures and widespread brain bleeding, according to the charges.
A detective assigned to the sheriff’s major crimes unit responded to the venue to interview witnesses, including a man who recorded the aftermath of the assault on Godsey, charging papers say. From witnesses, the detective learned Godsey, who was possibly intoxicated, exchanged words with a “particularly aggressive security guard” while waiting for two women in his party to return from the restroom, according to the charges.
Another woman, who was walking ahead of Godsey, made a rude comment and Godsey told her to mind her own business, the charges say. One man told Godsey not to talk to a woman that way and a second man, who had also been walking ahead of Godsey, turned around and punched him in the face, causing him to fall and hit his head on the concrete walkway, according to charging papers.
Godsey’s fiancée told the detective the man walked backward and tauntingly said, “You don’t talk to my friends like that,” the charges say. In the 27-second video clip recorded by a bystander, Godsey’s assailant is seen leaning over Godsey and shouting “sleep tight (expletive),” according to the charges.
Using images of the people seen in the bystander’s video, the detective was able to track their movements in video-surveillance footage from the concert venue to when they digitally scanned their tickets, ultimately leading to McCurdy being identified as the man who punched Godsey, charging papers say.
A relative who was with McCurdy at the concert later told the detective he had encouraged McCurdy to turn himself in, the charges say.
In early September, an Auburn police detective notified the sheriff’s detective that McCurdy’s Dodge Journey was parked outside a mixed martial arts gym, according to the charges. After confirming McCurdy wasn’t inside the gym, detectives learned McCurdy worked at a neighboring business and sold the vehicle to that business's bookkeeper on Aug. 28, saying he had a family emergency and was leaving town, the charges say.
Using the phone number that was used to scan the concert tickets, the detective got a warrant to “ping” McCurdy’s phone, which gave location data in Wolf Springs and Town Creek, Ala., and the detective learned the mother of McCurdy’s girlfriend lives in Town Creek, charging papers say.
Town Creek is about 2,500 miles southeast of Auburn.
McCurdy is scheduled to be arraigned on Monday.
Correction: An earlier version of this story incorrectly stated Devin McCurdy worked at a mixed martial arts gym in Auburn, where his vehicle was found parked outside. McCurdy worked at a neighboring business, according to charging papers.
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