New Jersey Bros Throw Memorial Lacrosse Tournament for Murdered BroBible Reader Brendan Patrick Tevlin

On June 25th, BroBible Nation suffered a devastating blow with the murder of Brendan Patrick Tevlin. Home for the summer in Northern New Jersey from his freshman year at the University of Richmond, the 19-year-old from Livingston was found murdered in his parents’ Jeep in the town of West Orange. According to reports, he was at a friend’s house playing video games, then texted his mom to say he was heading home in the family’s Jeep Liberty between 11.30pm and 12.00am. Brendan never made it home, though: He was shot shortly after and found dead in the driver’s seat of the Jeep a few hours later, with both the passenger and driver’s seat windows of the vehicle shattered.

Beloved by everyone, over 4,000 people attended his wake and over 1,000 attended Brendan’s funeral, with police shutting off major highways in New Jersey to ensure the funeral procession could go from the church to the cemetery. People came from “three different continents, five countries, and states all over this great nation of ours” to pay their respects.

Brendan’s murder hits close to home for those of us here at BroBible. Yesterday Brendan’s cousin wrote us yesterday to tell us a little bit about Brendan, who lived by the motto of “good vibes and easy living.” Brendan embodied everything is means to be a Bro: He was an avid surfer, played lacrosse, was a ladies man, had a smile to light up the room, was an honor roll student, was actively involved in clubs, played bagpipes, and was always the center of attention. In an e-mail his cousin mentioned that Brendan “loved your website” and “would always send me hilarious articles from this website while he was at University of Richmond.”

Brendan sounds like the type of dude we should all aspire to be. We’re grateful and honored to have had him as a reader. We regret never getting the chance to meet him.

According to his cousin, the night Brendan was killed, before he left his friends house, he told all his friends how they should to have a pick up lacrosse game with all of his high school friends. Honoring his last request, over 100 people showed up this weekend to pay tribute in a memorial lacrosse tournament at his old high school, Seton Hall Prep: high school players, D1 players, and 40-year-old men to relive their glory days. It all came together as an awesome gesture from his friends. Via:

“I’m really proud of Rich Shahpazian and the other friends of Brendan for putting this all together,” Seton Hall lacrosse coach David Giarrusso said. “Seton Hall has nothing to do with the planning and organization of this. It’s a bunch of friends getting together to play lacrosse for all the right reasons.”

Soon after Tevlin’s murder, Shahpazian–a lacrosse captain as a senior–met with fellow Seton Hall grad Dave King at the Broadway Diner in Summit to begin organizing the lacrosse game Brendan had discussed.

“We talked for about an hour, wrote some stuff down in a notebook,” Shahpazian said. “We were serious about it, but we never thought we’d get this far.”

What an awesome gesture from his friends. It’s the type of ethos we’re all about here at BroBible. According to Brendan’s cousin, the tournament raised over $8,000. Check out pics from the lax tournament here and here.

Yesterday Essex County prosecutors announced that three men have been charged in connection with Brendan Tevlin’s death. According to CBS New York, 29-year-old Ali Muhammad Brown of Seattle, Washington — a career criminal, by all accounts — allegedly pulled the trigger on Tevlin after he was surrounded by three strangers who robbed him.

“They surrounded (the Jeep) on foot,” said Acting Essex County Prosecutor Carolyn Murray. “One individual interacted briefly with Brendan Tevlin and then, from the passenger side of that vehicle, shot at him 10 times, striking him eight times.”

Investigators say Brown then drove Tevlin’s vehicle to an apartment complex on Northfield Avenue, where he stole undisclosed items from the victim.

U.S. marshals were on the hunt for Brown, a registered sex offender and suspect in two Seattle homicides, and knew he was staying somewhere in New Jersey. He was arrested in the woods in West Orange, where he was living, authorities said.

Brown had a gun that matched the one used in Tevlin’s killing, prosecutors said.

All three suspects face murder, robbery and weapons charges.

Brown is also a suspect in a carjacking in Point Pleasant, New Jersey, 1010 WINS’ Gary Baumgarten reported. 

Yesterday Brendan’s parents released a statement decrying unspeakable, senseless gun violence following the Essex County prosecutor’s announcement of the charges. I don’t think any of us can disagree with that.

May justice finally be served and may Brendan’s family eventually find peace. 

Good vibes and easy living. RIP, Brendan.

Brandon Wenerd is BroBible's publisher, writing on this site since 2009. He writes about sports, music, men's fashion, outdoor gear, traveling, skiing, and epic adventures. Based in Los Angeles, he also enjoys interviewing athletes and entertainers. Proud Penn State alum, former New Yorker. Email: brandon@brobible.com