Ring Leader in Fatal Gwinnett Home Invasion Found Guilty

The accused ring leader behind a drug-related murder in Gwinnett County last year has been found guilty of several charges connected to the incident, the District Attorney’s Office said Monday.

Brian Joseph Brewner, 29, of Flowery Branch, was found guilty Friday evening by a Gwinnett jury for the Aug. 6, 2014 home-invasion murder of Adam Schrier in Duluth. Prosecutors charged Brewner sent four armed men to Schrier’s home on Summercrest Lane to steal drugs and money.

Schrier’s girlfriend, Jami Smith and their 9-year-old daughter were wounded. Both had non life-threatening injuries. Another daughter, age 5, was at the home during the attack.

Brewner, who was not at the residence during the attack, was convicted of murder, felony murder, aggravated assault, first-degree burglary, home invasion, conspiracy to commit a crime, armed robbery, false imprisonment, first-degree cruelty to children and possession of a firearm by a first offender probationer.

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The DA’s Office said under Georgia’s “party to a crime” statue, Brewner’s role made him guilty of all the crimes committed by his co-defendants.

Prosecutors charged Brewner sent the four men -- Devon Jenkins of Lawrenceville, Pierre Scott of Snellville, James Stokes of Norcross and Jonathan Pichardo of Winder -- to steal five kilograms of methamphetamine and $40,000 that Schrier apparently had a hand in taking from another drug trafficker.

“During a struggle with Devon Jenkins, Adam Schrier was shot in the chest and died soon afterwards at the home,” the district attorney’s office said. “Jenkins also shot Jami Smith and her 9 year old daughter before Pierre Scott bound their hands and ankles with duct tape. After the assailants left, Smith and her daughter were able to free themselves and call police.”

Prosecutors said Brewner was a drug dealer who had set up at least one other home invasion robbery of a drug associate.

A day after he was located (Aug. 21, 2014) at a Brookhaven motel, but avoided capture, Brewner called Duluth PD Detective Bobby Johnson in an attempt to mitigate his role by giving up the names of the robbing crew, according to evidence presented at trial.

“He stated that he had ’just’ made introductions between the party wanting to recover the drugs and the members of the robbing crew,” the DA’s office news release stated. “He also gave them advice on how to commit the home invasion. While law enforcement and prosecutors believed he had a more significant role than he was stating, under Georgia’s “party to a crime” statue, even his minimized role made him guilty of all the crime committed by his co-defendants.”

Brewner will be sentenced at a later date.

The trials of the four co-defendants have yet to be scheduled.