VERNON, Ala. — A Vernon man was sentenced to death Wednesday after a jury convicted him of capital murder for killing his ex-wife in 2015, according to a press release from Alabama 24th Circuit District Attorney Andy Hamlin.
Brandon Sykes was found guilty in the death of Keisha Sykes, 29.
Brandon Sykes, 40, was arrested three months after Keisha Sykes disappeared from her Vernon home in February 2015. Her burned and abandoned vehicle was found several days later in New Hope. Her blood was found in her home and the bed of Brandon Sykes’ truck.
Brandon Sykes’ trial in Lamar County Circuit Court lasted three weeks, with the jury reaching a verdict Tuesday. According to the press release, the jury deliberated “briefly” before finding him guilty of murder in commission of a burglary, kidnapping and robbery.
“This verdict and sentence signifies justice for Keisha and her family,” Hamlin said. “My hope is that it helps them find some measure of closure. They have waited a very long time for this.”
The case was investigated by the Vernon Police Department, the Lamar County Sheriff’s Office, the District Attorney’s Criminal Investigation Division and the Alabama State Bureau of Investigation.
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