A Georgia man convicted of murdering a Good Samaritan during a deadly 2024 carjacking has been sentenced to life in prison after making bizarre claims in court and reportedly mutilating himself while behind bars.
Robert Brandon Keller, 32, was found guilty on all 10 charges against him during Wednesday’s court proceedings before receiving two consecutive life sentences, plus an additional 25 years.
Before the sentence was handed down, Keller addressed the court with a series of unusual remarks.
“I’m a divine being,” he said, according to VT, before adding: “I am here by special presentation and appearance of the entity known as Robert Brandon Lewis Keller.”
He continued: “I would like the ability to be trusted, to tell the truth, but this is not the setting I trust to do so.”
According to The Georgia Virtue, Keller later told jail staff that he gouged out both of his own eyes and bit off part of his tongue in an effort to be transferred to a medical prison.
He reportedly said he did it to “cover his a**” and secure placement in a medical facility.
The convictions stem from the October 2024 killing of Bruce William Dupree, 43.
Prosecutors said Dupree stopped along Interstate 16 in Bulloch County, Georgia, to offer Keller, who was hitchhiking, a ride.
Instead, investigators said Keller, who was under the influence of drugs at the time, turned on the man who had tried to help him. Authorities said he slit Dupree’s throat, dragged him into the grassy median along the interstate, and left him there to die.
A witness called 911 after spotting Dupree covered in blood and shouting for help on the side of the road. He later died from his injuries.
Keller was convicted on four counts of felony murder, malice murder, aggravated assault, aggravated battery, armed robbery, first-degree hijacking of a motor vehicle, and possession of a firearm or knife during the commission of a felony.
“Represented the worst of us”
During sentencing, Judge Matthew Hube described Keller as someone who “represented the worst of us.”
He said Keller “took advantage of someone who was trying to help, and left a trail of wreckage in his wake.”
Following the sentencing, Acting Bulloch County District Attorney Jillian Gibson praised the outcome.
“To be able to protect our community from a very dangerous individual, so we are very grateful for that,” Gibson said.
The victim’s niece, Mandy Moore, also spoke in court about the lasting effect of Dupree’s death.
“Bruce (the victim) is gone and won’t come back, and nothing can fix that, nothing can fill that void,” she said.
“The justice system prevailed; no other family will go through what we went through at the hands of this man.”
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