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Insets, left to right: Brandon Dale Frick (Ware County Jail) and Buffy and Jacob Cothern (WTLV). Background: The area in Florida where Frick allegedly killed Jacob Cothern (WTLV).
In a tragic incident in Georgia, a 29-year-old man is accused of fatally shooting a longtime friend in front of the friend’s wife. The altercation reportedly began when the man touched the wife inappropriately during a car ride, prompting her to stop the vehicle and confront him.
Brandon Dale Frick has been charged with malice murder, unauthorized discharge of a firearm, and possession of a firearm during the commission of a crime. These charges are in connection to the death of Jacob Garrett Cothern, aged 35, as announced by local authorities.
The Waycross Police Department reported that on March 13, at approximately 8:22 p.m., officers responded to a shooting near the intersection of Snelson Street and Old Brunel Street. Upon arrival, they found Jacob Cothern with multiple gunshot wounds. Unfortunately, he was declared dead at the scene.
During the police response, officers encountered Frick nearby. He was armed and allegedly attempting to flee the scene but was apprehended without further incident. Frick was then taken to the Ware County Jail, where he was charged with murder.
Buffy Cothern, the wife of the deceased, recounted the harrowing event to Jacksonville’s NBC affiliate, WTLV. She was in the driver’s seat when the shooting occurred and has since shared her account of the devastating final moments of her husband’s life.
She said the couple had been giving Frick — whom her husband considered a childhood friend — a ride on the night of the shooting. During the drive, she alleged Frick touched her arm inappropriately, prompting her to pull over near Snelson Street, just outside a church.
According to Buffy, her husband told Frick to get out of the vehicle and refused to take him home after what she described as disrespect toward her.
What happened next, she recounted in detail:
“Brandon pulled a gun, shot Jacob one time, and when I see my husband . . . he fell to the ground, and Brandon is telling him, ‘Get up and take me home.’ Jacob’s holding a hand up: ‘No, Brandon, please stop. We don’t have to do it like this.’ When he realized that Jacob couldn’t get up…he shot him again, and casually puts the gun back and just takes off walking. Like no remorse whatsoever.”
Buffy Cothern described her husband as funny, outgoing, and “very loud,” someone who had worked hard to turn his life around. The couple married in 2024 and bonded over their shared commitment to recovery from addiction, she said.
According to Buffy Cothern, her husband had been out of incarceration for nearly two years — longer than he had been in some time — and was making significant strides, including securing a job with Waycross Public Works, earning multiple promotions, and planning to enroll in college while pursuing a commercial driver’s license.
“He provided me the love and consistency that I’ve never had before,” she said.
Frick is being held without bond as the investigation continues. It was not immediately clear when he was scheduled to appear in court.