Brandy Rucker (Memphis Police Dept.) and Alexander Bulakhov and family (GoFundMe)
One of two people accused of killing an employee with St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital in Tennessee during a botched robbery last year has been set free after a judge dismissed the litany of charges filed against her for lack of probable cause.
Shelby County General Sessions Court Judge Sheila B. Renfroe on Wednesday ordered charges of first-degree murder and especially aggravated battery, among others, be dropped against Brandy Rucker in the November 2023 slaying of Alexander Bulakhov due to lack of probable cause, court records reviewed by Law&Crime show. Jail records show that she was released after the hearing.
Rucker, the alleged getaway driver, appeared in court along with co-defendant Marious Ward, the alleged gunman accused of fatally shooting Bulakhov in front of his wife and 2-year-old child. Ward’s case was “held to state,” meaning he will remain in detention at the Shelby County Jail without bond while the state brings his case to a grand jury for indictment.
Ward is charged with first-degree murder, murder in perpetration of a felony, especially aggravated robbery, first-degree attempted murder, attempted aggravated assault, and employing a firearm with the intention to commit a felony.
The Shelby County District Attorney’s Office explained why the charges against Rucker were dismissed.
“As it relates to the shooting death of the St. Jude researcher, charges were not ‘dropped’ against one of the defendants, Brandy Rucker. Instead, the judge ‘dismissed’ it for lack of probable cause, because law enforcement was unable to identify the defendant. However, our prosecutor is expediting the case to Grand Jury to get an indictment so that the defendant faces charges in criminal court. This case is not over and our office will seek justice for Dr. Alexander Bulakhov,” Erica R. Williams, director of communications and public affairs for the Shelby County District Attorney’s Office, told Law&Crime in a statement.
“It’s important to note that this happens often as cases are first in general session’s court—which has limited jurisdiction. If charges are dismissed in general sessions, many times our office takes the case to grand jury so that charges are faced in criminal court,” Williams said.
During Wednesday’s hearing, the victim’s wife, Anastasiia Bulakhova, testified about her husband’s murder, reiterating the story she originally provided to investigators.
As previously reported by Law&Crime, officers with the Memphis Police Department at about 7:54 p.m. on Sunday, Nov. 12 responded to an emergency call regarding a robbery with shots fired in the area of 495 Tennessee Street. Upon arriving at the scene, first responders found an adult male — later identified as Bulakhov — suffering from what appeared to be a gunshot wound.
The victim was transported to Regional One Health in critical condition but later succumbed to his wounds and was pronounced dead.
Bulakhov’s wife told investigators that they had been walking in the area with their 2-year-old child when a man wearing a black hoodie and a ski mask approached them brandishing a handgun and demanding their property. The victim gave the man his wallet.
“The male then pointed the firearm directly at [Bulakhov’s wife] and demanded more property,” police wrote in the affidavit. “At this time Alexander Bulakhov, in an attempt to defend his wife, struggled with the male over the firearm. During the struggle, Alexander Bulakhov was shot. A 9mm caliber spent shell casing was recovered from the scene.”
Police obtained surveillance footage from the area showing the male suspect exiting a white 2013 Toyota Camry with a “specific damage profile” from the passenger side, walking toward the victim and his family before shooting the victim. The Camry had a missing rear bumper, and a severely dented passenger side door, and one of the rear windows was broken out and covered with plastic and tape.
“Several surveillance cameras in the area captured the suspect’s Toyota Camry circling the area, making an erratic U-turn, appearing to be casing for potential victims in the minutes before the murder,” police wrote.
Police on Nov. 13 located a Camry matching the specific damage profile of the vehicle in the surveillance footage in the parking lot of the Whitney Manor Apartments located in the 1500 block of Whitney Avenue. Police watched Rucker and Ward get into the Camry and drive out of the parking lot before conducting a traffic stop. Ward was found to have a 9 mm handgun in his waistband and the two were taken to the station for questioning.
“Rucker admitted to being the driver of the Toyota Camry, watch[ing] Ward exit the Camry with a handgun in his hand and walk[ing] toward the area of 495 Tennessee St. before hurrying back to the vehicle and advising her to flee the area,” the affidavit states. “Ward confessed to being the gunman responsible for the murder of Alexander Bulakhov. Ward further advised that the 9mm handgun found in his possession was the same weapon used during the murder.”
A LinkedIn profile believed to be Bulakhov’s stated that he was a postdoctoral researcher at St. Jude’s.
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