Scare actor accused of stabbing, mutilating best friend pleads guilty

ROME, Ga. (Court TV) — A haunted house scare actor has pled guilty to murdering and disemboweling a friend he’d known since high school, who stayed with him on his way to Alabama to visit his girlfriend.

Brandon Christopher Risner, 23, admitted to stabbing and dismembering his long-time friend, Aaron William Davis, 21, on or between Nov. 11-12, 2022, according to his indictment. He had until June 20, 2024, to plead guilty or face a jury.

Brandon Risner (Floyd County Jail)

Davis and Risner were close friends. They went to the same high school and attended the same church, The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, in Cumming, Georgia. Davis and Risner even picked the same college, though Risner only attended BYU-Idaho for a semester in the fall of 2021. Davis graduated from the university with a degree in political science in July 2022, Deseret News reported .

Months later, on Nov. 11, 2022, Davis stayed overnight with Risner on his way to Alabama to visit his girlfriend. When Davis didn’t arrive at his destination, Davis’ family contacted the police in Rome.

The following day, authorities discovered Davis’ abandoned blue Toyota Prius in a ditch behind a levee at a local park, which led them to Risner’s house on Collingwood Road.

“He (Risner) removed the body of said person (Davis) from one location off Collingwood Road to another off of Tumlin Drive where he buried said person in an unmarked grave,” a criminal indictment says. “(Risner) attempted to get rid of the vehicle driven by (Davis), which contained blood, and (tried) to remove blood on the mattress and the carpet and a rug as well as blood and blood spatter on a ceiling of an upstairs bedroom,” according to the indictment.

Investigators found Davis’ body under 6-to-12 inches of dirt in a 6-to-8-foot hole left by a large uprooted tree, according to police reports. Risner initially fled but eventually turned himself in, Rome News-Tribune reported .

Court documents show the night before Davis was killed, he went to a bar with Risner and “became inebriated after consuming high BAC content beers the defendant ordered for him.” They returned to Risner’s house, and Davis slept in the upstairs guest bedroom.

“During the night or early morning hours of the following day, the defendant allegedly used a sharp object to stab Mr. Davis multiple times in the head, chest, torso and extremities, leading to his death,” court documents say. “The defendant purportedly placed the deceased body into Mr. Davis’ vehicle, drove to another location, and buried Mr. Davis in a shallow unmarked grave.”

Brandon Risner agreed tp plead guilty to stabbing and dismembering his best friend. (Court TV)

In total, Risner has pled guilty to 12 charges, including malice murder, two counts of felony murder, two counts of aggravated assault, aggravated battery, concealing the death of another, abandonment of a dead body and theft by taking, as well as misdemeanor removal of body parts from the scene of a death, including a portion of Davis’ small intestines, tampering with evidence and obstruction of an officer.

Risner’s attorney, Jeffrey Heller, requested two mental health evaluations, Rome News-Tribune reported . According to court records, Risner was found competent for trial in February and has a plea hearing set for June 20. If he had pled not guilty, his trial would have begun on Monday, June 24.

Randy Davis, Aaron Davis’ father, told 11Alive that Risner was very close to the Davis family. “He’s been as much of a son to us as anyone. It’s really like losing two kids at this point. It just felt like betrayal,” Randy Davis said.

Risner had been pursuing an acting career and worked as a haunted house scare actor in Canton, Georgia, according to his social media pages. Before his arrest, he posted a video of himself singing and playing the guitar.