The aunt who raised the 23-year-old Anderson Township man killed six months ago in a shootout in Pendleton County hopes recently unsealed federal indictments against two men mean her nephew's death will not go unpunished.

        He was in the wrong place at the wrong time, she said, and not part of the activities police allege were going on.

        Robert E. Gibson Jr. was shot in the back and killed about 5:40 a.m. April 27 on a Pendleton County farm. State and federal law enforcement officials say the homicide investigation uncovered a dog fighting ring and cocaine and marijuana smuggling operations.

Crystal Holmes (left) and Betty Holtke pose with a photo of Robert Gibson, who was killed in a shooting in Pendleton County in April. Ms. Holtke is Mr. Gibson's grandmother. (Patrick Reddy photo) | ZOOM |

        “Bobby (Gibson) was not armed,” said his aunt, Crystal Holmes of Cincinnati. “He didn't own a dog. And he wouldn't deal drugs.”

        Ms. Holmes, who raised Mr. Gibson, said the former Marine and 1996 Turpin High School graduate was just catching a ride home from The Waterfront bar in Covington after his girlfriend didn't show up for a date.

        Kentucky State Police Detective Steve Auvenshine called the drug bust “significant.” Detective Auvenshine is stationed at Post 5, which covers 10 counties — stretching from northern Boone County south to Bourbon County.

        Justin Davis, 24, of Greenwood in rural Pendleton County, and Robert Koch, address and age not available, were indicted Oct. 10 on federal drug charges. If convicted, each could spend 30-plus years in jail and be fined more than $1 million. Mr. Davis and Mr. Koch are being held without bail at an undisclosed location.

        Prosecutors will not say why the two have not been charged in the shooting death of Mr. Gibson nearly six months after the incident. They will also not comment on what role, if any, Mr. Gibson had in the apparent drug deal gone bad.

        Ms. Holmes said her nephew received an honorable discharge from the Marine Corps less than a year before he was killed because of a recurring back injury. Mr. Gibson, who would have turned 24 on Sept. 11, was a member of an anti-terrorism security division while in the military.

        He received the back injury while playing football for Turpin High School. Mr. Gibson — who was about 6 feet 4 inches tall and 220 pounds — played linebacker in high school.

        “Bobby (Mr. Gibson) was a gentle giant,” said Mr. Holmes. “He was not a mean person.”

        Jerry Gunning, a counselor at Turpin High School, said Mr. Gibson was well-liked in high school.

        “Kids thought a lot of him. He had no enemies here,” he said.

        Mr. Gibson graduated from Joliet Junior College in Illinois before joining the Marines and had enrolled for fall classes at the University of Cincinnati. He wanted to major in criminal justice.

        Mr. Gibson was buried with full military honors in Dayton. Engraved on his tombstone is “Smile for Me Now,” the title of a song recorded by Tupac and Scarface for Death Row Records.

        Ms. Holmes said the song's title reflected her nephew's personality. She said: “He had a way of making people smile.”
       

Feds recommend police revisions
Overhaul of force rules urged
Local cops say report not a surprise
Director of OMI fired by Shirey
Highlights of the Department of Justice report
Stories presaged aspects of feds' report
Choke hold not ruled out
For trial spectators, Nov. 7 frozen in time
Jurors to visit Owensby scene
County passes loan plan
Fuller bankruptcy erased $39K debt
Gift promotes women studying engineering
Grant to expand study of health risks to children
'Moms' send goodies to soldiers
Storm ushers in early cold snap
Tristate A.M. Report
UC plans dinner to honor 4 criminal court creators
Woman will be first promoted to assistant chief
HOWARD: Massage therapy for N.Y.
PULFER: Suzie Thompson
73 Super Stop to refund for gas gouging
Candidates partake in forum
Candidates respond to scenarios
Challengers: Lebanon council prickly, unresponsive
Election rekindles fire issue
Lebanon balks at three-way land swap
Museum brings learning to kids
NATO a player in Afghan war
Seminar directed toward black men
Sierra Club study rejects new highway
Trustee race about building
Blackwell begins how-to-vote education program
Florence closer to baseball team
Kenton OKs security measures, ponders more
Kentucky News Briefs
Newport restricts parking
Ryle band 4th in state
Slain man's aunt seeks answers