Brockton Man Accused Of Murder To Hide Gay Relationship

BROCKTON, MA — A man accused of killing his boyfriend to hide their gay relationship was indicted on a murder charge Monday by a Plymouth County grand jury.

Kian Willis, 21, of Brockton, was first arrested and arraigned in Brockton District Court on Nov. 29.

Prosecutors from the Plymouth County District Attorney’s Office told the Brockton Enterprise they used phone records and surveillance footage to trace Willis to Keith Avenue, where Willis shot and killed Patrick Sequeira-Ferreira, 27, of Brockton, on Nov. 12. Sequeira-Ferreira was shot three times and was rushed to Boston Medical Center, but succumbed to his injuries at the hospital.

District Attorney Jessica Kenny, at Willis's arraignment on Nov. 29, told the court that Willis sent text messages asking Sequeira-Ferreira to come outside on the night of the shooting. Willis was the last person to have contacted the victim before his death, said prosecutors.

When police interviewed Willis, he was concerned that people would find out about his relationship with Sequeira-Ferreira, police said. According to Kenny, Willis was afraid of losing his job, given that both him and the victim worked together at the Office of Community Corrections, which is part of the state's corrections department, where relationships with co-workers are forbidden. Willis's family was not fully aware he was gay, according to Kenny.

Willis will be arraigned in Superior Court at a later date.

Photo via Brockton Police Department