Benny Clyde Hallmark, 64, was found dead in a reclining chair at his Orlando home on the morning of October 20, 2017. Born May 18, 1953, in Guin, Alabama, Hallmark had lived in Orlando since 1960 and was remembered by the community as kind and helpful.

Police and the Orlando Fire Department responded to the scene and determined Hallmark’s death was a homicide by firearm; investigators concluded the shooting was not accidental. Authorities identified 37-year-old Jimmy Merritt as the primary suspect after discovering Merritt had stolen Hallmark’s checks and tried to cash them. Investigators also found another body buried in the backyard of a home at 3008 Lauressa Lane; that body was identified as Hallmark’s cousin Billy Wayne Deaton.

Merritt was arrested and charged with first-degree murder with a firearm, grand theft, scheme to defraud, and uttering a forged check. If anyone knew Hallmark, Deaton, or has information about what happened, please share what you know.