ONE FEATHER STAFF REPORT
A murder occurred in Cherokee on Saturday, Aug. 14, but many of the details are being withheld at the moment. According to a Criminal Complaint filed in U.S. District Court on Monday, Aug. 16, Bridgeo M. Phillips Sr., 28, allegedly did “unlawfully kill another human being with malice aforethought.”
The defendant is listed as being “Indian” on the Criminal Complaint, but he is not an EBCI tribal member. His tribal affiliation has not been released as of yet.
No details have been released as to the location of the murder or the victim. The affidavit accompanying the Criminal Complaint remains under seal at the current time.
According to federal officials, Phillips made his initial court appearance on the morning of Aug. 16 and is scheduled for his detention hearing on Tuesday, Aug. 17 at the U.S. Courthouse in Asheville. He is currently in local federal custody pending that hearing.
The court has ordered that he be afforded court-appointed counsel, but details on that are not available at this time.
