Man charged in fatal shooting of 5-year-old Durham girl was cousin of girl's mother; has record with more than 50 prior charges
The man who was arrested for the murder of a 5-year-old girl was a cousin of the girl's mother and was living with them at the time of the shooting.
Brian Deshan Luster, 42, of Durham, was arrested and charged with the first-degree murder of Khloe Fennell, the attempted first-degree murder of Destiny Sidberry and possession of a firearm by a felon. He is being held in the Durham County Jail with no bond.
Luster is the cousin of Brittany Dash, Khloe's mother, and was living with them at the time of the shooting.
According to police at the scene, the shooting happened in the 300 block of N. Guthrie Avenue. Police were originally called to the scene for a drug overdose.
Destiny was hospitalized in critical condition. Khloe was killed.
Francine Gray, a friend of Dash, said that Destiny was watching Khloe and another child at the home when Luster showed up.
"Brittany is one of those people, if you need someone, she's giving it to you. You need a place to stay, she'll open her doors for you," Gray said. "She was helping someone out, letting him stay here."
On the arrest warrant, his home address was listed on North Driver Street, just blocks away from the scene of the shooting.
Luster has been in medical isolation since Thursday. WRAL News learned Friday that he will not be appearing in court. He will be represented by a court appointed attorney.
Luster's lengthy criminal record spans more than two decades
Luster, 42, has a lengthy criminal record that dates back to 2001. He has faced more than 50 charges since he was 19 and spent nearly five years incarcerated.
Here are some of the crimes Luster's been convicted of within the past two decades:
- In the early 2000s, Luster spent seven months in jail and was charged with numerous crimes, including assaulting a female, making threats and domestic criminal trespassing.
- In 2005, Luster went back to jail for close to one year and two months. He was charged with crimes that included drug charges, assaulting a female, assault with a deadly weapon and eluding arrest.
- Years later, Luster was in jail for more than three months after being convicted of assault with a deadly weapon and willful and wanton injury to personal property.
- In 2010, he was imprisoned nearly three years. He was convicted on charges of assault with a deadly weapon inflicting serious injury.
- In 2017, Luster was sentenced for more than two years and three months. He was convicted of larceny, stealing more than $1,000.
- Now, he's charged with the murder of his cousin's 5-year-old daughter and the attempted murder of a 15-year-old girl.
