TOOELE — Criminal charges were filed Wednesday against a man accused of shooting and killing a home intruder and then dumping his body 40 miles away in a remote area of Tooele County rather than call police.
Brandon Keith Burr, 38, who is listed in court documents as being homeless in Tooele, is charged in 3rd District Court with obstruction of justice, a second-degree felony, and abuse of a dead body, a third-degree felony.
Burr is accused of shooting and killing Devin Perryman, 24, of West Valley City, after Perryman and another man broke into the residence where Burr and others were staying with the intent to rob them, according to charging documents. The residence was a known drug house, according to police.
After his arrest, Burr told police “the robbery suspects came in and advised them to empty their pockets. Mr. Burr stated there was a revolver on the table in front of him, he grabbed it, and shot at one of the robbery suspects,” the charges state. “Mr. Burr was then shot by a robbery suspect, sustaining a gunshot wound to the right knee, which initiated a gunfight inside the home.”
Perryman was shot multiple times and killed by Burr, the charges state. Burr was determined to be acting in self-defense, however, and he was not charged in connection with the shooting death.
But after the shootout, Burr cleaned up all the shell casings in the house and took Perryman’s body to a remote location near Delle, Tooele County, and dumped it, charging documents state.
The U.S. Marshals Office helped track down and arrest Burr on Sunday.
Austin Donavon Strelhe, 23, of Salt Lake City — the other man who police say tried to rob Burr — was charged in 3rd District Court on Tuesday with aggravated robbery and aggravated burglary, first-degree felonies.
Police say charges against others who were believed to be in the house or who helped dispose of Perryman’s body are pending.