One day after family posts $20K reward, Hamilton police make arrests in Binbrook homicide
Four men have been arrested and charged with second-degree murder in the stabbing death of Brock Beck.
The arrests came one day after the family posted a $20,000 reward for information about the killing, but police say it had limited impact on the arrest of the suspects.
Beck, 20, was found on the driveway of 3036 Binbrook Rd. with stab wounds shortly before 2 a.m. on July 26. He was rushed to hospital, where he later died.
The four-month-long investigation turned a tide Wednesday when police arrested three suspects without incident.
Cam-Thai Khath, 18, and Petar Kunic, 19, both of Stoney Creek, are charged with second-degree murder and one count of assault causing bodily harm, respectively. Thomas Vasquez, 22, of Hamilton, is charged with second-degree murder.
A fourth suspect was arrested around noon Thursday, just before Det. Steve Bereziuk opened a news conference to reporters announcing the charges against the three other men.
The suspects were not previously known to police and bore no connection to Beck.
Bereziuk said the assault causing bodily harm charges were laid on just two suspects because of their pointed involvement in the injuries Beck sustained.
I'm not going to speak specifically about the injuries, but the injuries were significant enough to warrant that charge, that level of assault," he said.
On Tuesday, Beck's family posted a privately funded $20,000 reward for any information leading to the arrest and conviction of those responsible for the homicide.
Bereziuk said the reward, albeit welcome, had limited impact on the arrest of the suspects.
We had built our case and have been working our case since July, when this happened," he said. We were just at a point in the investigation where we were satisfied to make the arrests."
The information we received from the community was a huge assistance for us," Bereziuk added.
Police continue to believe the attack on Beck was fuelled by road rage gone wrong."
A confrontation involving Beck's 2011 grey Ford Fusion and a suspect car - which Bereziuk confirmed Thursday to be a 2019 Hyundai Elantra - at the intersection of Binbrook Road and Highway 56 preceded the fight on the driveway.
The suspects then followed Beck to a home on Binbrook Road where he was attending a backyard gathering with about seven friends.
Through their investigation, police believe the suspects pulled up behind Beck's car and confronted him and a friend in the driveway.
The suspects later fled east on Binbrook Road, then north on Highway 56 toward Hamilton, police said.
This was a chance encounter that happened that day," Bereziuk said, again alluding to the homicide as a byproduct of road rage. The fact there was no link to the accused and (Beck) ... The information we received from the community was a huge assistance for us and allowed us to get to this point."
Bereziuk said the Beck family was very surprised" to hear of the arrests and charges, and considered the news a sense of relief.
They were very gracious with us and happy to hear," he said. It's another step for them in the healing process, because there's still a long way ahead for that family."
Sebastian Bron is a Hamilton-based reporter at The Spectator. Reach him via email: sbron@thespec.com