Local
Broward cold-case investigation leads to murder charges in 2007 killing
Two women have been charged in the fatal shooting of Leon Heron, who was robbed outside his Lauderdale Lakes apartment in 2007. Investigators say DNA evidence and confessions helped identify the suspects nearly two decades later.
Two women have been charged with first-degree murder in the 2007 robbery and killing of Leon Heron outside his apartment in Lauderdale Lakes, the Broward Sheriff’s Office said Thursday.
Brittany Hanfield and Sheila Arstil were 17 at the time of the May 13, 2007, attack, according to investigators. Heron, 34, was returning home with dinner from Taco Bell to his wife when two people confronted him and demanded his belongings, detectives said. A struggle followed, and one of the assailants shot him.
The case remained unsolved until a cold-case detective met with Hanfield in state prison in 2023. Hanfield initially said she had information as a witness to a Broward murder, Detective David Towsley said. Investigators later concluded she was an alleged participant and identified Arstil as the second suspect.
Towsley said the women had been driving around Broward County in a stolen SUV, looking for someone to rob. Detectives said DNA evidence and confessions implicated both women.
The investigation also brought long-awaited answers to Heron’s family. Towsley said Heron’s mother had spent years wondering why her son was targeted and killed, and was grateful to learn what happened. Hanfield and Arstil are being held without bond.