Background: News footage shows the apartment complex in Baton Rouge, La., where Kayelyn Ford was shot (WAFB). Inset (left): Brandon Bell (East Baton Rouge Sheriff’s Office). Inset (right): Kayelyn Ford (Facebook).
A Louisiana man was lying in wait in the woods for his ex-girlfriend to leave her apartment after sheriff’s deputies told her he was not inside.
Brandon Bell, 24, has been accused by the East Baton Rouge Sheriff’s Office of fatally shooting his ex-girlfriend, 22-year-old Kayelyn Ford, after ambushing her in her apartment. Ford had called the police during the early hours of Monday because she was concerned Bell was trying to enter her apartment using an old key. Responding to the call, Sheriff’s deputies searched the apartment for Bell but did not find him, informing Ford that the apartment was safe.
Ford reportedly told the deputies that she and a friend were going to stay somewhere else. However, Bell was allegedly waiting for her nearby.
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Based on WAFB’s coverage of the affidavit, Bell emerged from the woods shortly after the deputies’ departure, just as Ford was leaving her apartment. He allegedly shot her before taking his own life.
Ford was pronounced dead at the scene. Bell was taken to a nearby hospital in critical condition. The East Baton Rouge Sheriff’s Office stated that Bell was not expected to survive.
WAFB reported that Bell had a history of domestic violence accusations, including one with an unnamed victim in April. The Baton Rouge Police Department stated that during the alleged incident in April, Bell and the unnamed alleged victim got into a verbal argument that became physical. That victim reportedly told police that she asked Bell to leave her apartment after he “broke a promise.”
Bell was arrested and booked into custody after the April incident and granted a $1,000 bond.
Ford reportedly had a protective order against Bell, who was forbidden from being within 100 yards of her.
