Suspect in murder-for-hire case agrees on move to Vermont

Crime

Gregory Davis, 49, of Danville was kidnapped from his home and found shot to death the next day in Barnet.

By Associated Press

August 23, 2022 | 7:43 AM

BURLINGTON, Vt. (AP) — The fourth suspect in the 2018 murder of a Vermont man involved in a troubled oil deal has agreed to travel to the state to face federal murder for hire charges.

Last week Serhat Gumrukcu, who is being held in Los Angeles, agreed to waive a hearing and be turned over to the U.S. Marshal’s Service for transport to Vermont.

Gumrukcu, 39, is the final suspect facing charges for the Jan. 6, 2018 kidnapping and killing of Gregory Davis, 49, of Danville. Davis was kidnapped from his home and found shot to death the next day in Barnet.

It’s unclear when Gumrukcu will appear in court in Vermont. His Vermont attorney declined comment on Monday.

Prosecutors say Davis had been threatening to go to the FBI with information that Gumrukcu, the co-founder of a Los Angeles-based biotechnology company, was defrauding Davis in a multimillion-dollar oil deal that Gumrukcu and his brother had entered into with Davis in 2015.

Two other suspects, including the alleged kidnapper, are being held pending trial. A third suspect has pleaded guilty and is awaiting sentencing.