Steven Butcher dropped off his older brother Matthew at work last Thursday, not realizing it would be the last time he saw him alive.
Matthew Butcher, 27, was shot and killed after at least four robbers stormed the Higher Path Holistic Care Collective on Sunset Boulevard in the Echo Park area, said Cmdr. David Doan, chief of detectives.
Steven says his brother was shot execution style.
"I think they said something like they either laid him down or they put him on his knees and they shot him in the back of the head. They executed him," he told KTLA.
A security guard was shot and wounded in the attack.
Steven says he believes the victims knew the suspects.
"I feel like they knew him because he had to have let them in. The security guard let them in."
"They killed an innocent human being," he said.
Steven says his brother worked at the clinic as a clerk for five years and understood the perception that goes along with pot shops.
He says his brother just wanted to help people.
Butcher's mother, Julie Butcher, told the Los Angeles Times her son had been trying to make ends meet in a tough economy.
"He was one of the most peaceful people," she said "He would have given them anything they wanted. There's no reason for anyone to die over marijuana."
The suspects fled with an unknown amount of cash and drugs. Homicide detectives were trying to determine whether the incident was connected to another deadly attack at a nearby pot clinic about five hours later.
In that attack, the owner of the Hollywood Holistic dispensary found the body of an employee at the Hollywood store.
No surveillance video was available from either store, and because investigators do not know the motive for the second killing, they were unsure whether the two attacks were linked, Doan said.
A vigil is planned and a memorial fund has been set up in Butcher's honor.
The vigil will take place at 8 p.m. Wednesday at Eagle Rock High School.
A memorial fund has also been set up in his honor:
Matthew Butcher Memorial Fund P.O. Box 411621 LA, CA 90041
Source: KTLA.com
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