Serhat Gumrukcu faces mandatory life imprisonment after orchestrating the killing of Gregory Davis over a failed oil transaction.
California biotech executive Serhat Gumrukcu was found guilty of masterminding a murder-for-hire plot that resulted in the 2018 death of father-of-six Gregory Davis. The 42-year-old Los Angeles resident, who founded Enochian Biosciences, recruited multiple intermediaries to carry out the killing after Davis threatened legal action over their collapsed oil deal, according to The New York Post.
Davis was abducted from his Vermont home and found shot dead in a snowbank the following day. His wife was pregnant with their seventh child when he was murdered in January 2018.
Complex Criminal Network Orchestrated Killing
Gumrukcu assembled a chain of conspirators to distance himself from the actual murder execution. He recruited friend Berk Eratay, who then enlisted Aron Ethridge as a second intermediary to hire hitman Jerry Banks.
Banks arrived at Davis' Danville home on January 6, 2018, impersonating a deputy U.S. marshal with a vehicle equipped with flashing emergency lights. The unsuspecting victim was told he needed to report for questioning before being abducted and killed.
Davis' body was discovered in a snowbank near his Barnet, Vermont residence on January 7, 2018. The elaborate deception allowed the perpetrators to remove Davis from his home without immediate suspicion from neighbors or family members.
Investigation Reveals Business Motive And Deception
Federal investigators quickly uncovered electronic communications showing tensions between Gumrukcu and Davis regarding their failed oil transaction. The FBI interviewed Gumrukcu twice during the initial investigation, but prosecutors determined he provided false information in both sessions.
Cellphone records, financial documents, purchase receipts, emails, and messaging data ultimately exposed the conspiracy's structure and participants' roles. The digital evidence trail connected Gumrukcu to the murder despite his attempts to maintain distance through intermediaries.
Gumrukcu was simultaneously pursuing a multimillion-dollar biotech merger involving his claimed HIV cure development around 2017. Prosecutors argued that Davis' threatened lawsuit posed a significant risk to this lucrative business opportunity.
Legal Proceedings And Sentencing Outcomes
The biotech executive was arrested in May 2022 and convicted in April on charges including murder-for-hire, conspiracy, and wire fraud. Acting U.S. Attorney Michael P. Drescher emphasized the complexity of uncovering Gumrukcu's hidden role through multiple payment layers.
All co-conspirators received substantial prison sentences for their participation in the murder scheme. Banks was sentenced to 200 months imprisonment followed by five years supervised release, while Eratay received 110 months plus three years supervision.
Ethridge was sentenced to 140 months imprisonment with five years supervised release following his conviction. The arrests of Banks and Ethridge occurred in April 2022, with Eratay apprehended the following month.
Victim's Family Confronts Convicted Killer
Davis' widow, Melissa, delivered powerful testimony during Gumrukcu's September 25 court appearance, addressing the devastating impact on their seven children. She directly challenged the defendant's belief that he could silence her husband through murder.
The emotional courtroom confrontation saw Melissa Davis declare that Gumrukcu's lies would end in that courtroom. Her testimony highlighted the ongoing trauma experienced by the family since Davis' murder in 2018.
Gumrukcu's sentencing was postponed to November during that same court session. The conviction carries a mandatory life sentence without possibility of parole for the murder-for-hire charges.
