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CaseC-003

The murder of Steven Bryant (Sulocana dasa), Los Angeles, 1986

Period
1986–1994
People involved
5

Recorded in this case

5 entries — 2 admissions, 1 conviction, 2 allegations.

Last reviewed
AdmittedTapahpunjaAdmittedKirtanananda SwamiConvictedTirtha DasDocumented allegationRadhanath SwamiDocumented allegationKuladri Das
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Summary

Steven Bryant (Sulocana dasa), a former New Vrindaban member who had criticized its leadership, was shot dead in his van in Los Angeles on 22 May 1986. Thomas Drescher (Tirtha das) was convicted of his murder in 1991 and sentenced to life without parole. Tapahpunja (Terry Sheldon) pleaded guilty in 1994 to a conspiracy charge; others alleged to have taken part in the plot were never charged.

Bryant had left New Vrindaban and criticized its leadership. Prosecutors alleged that New Vrindaban officials paid Drescher $2,500 of a promised $8,000 to kill him (UPI). Drescher denied guilt at his Los Angeles trials, but confessed to the shooting as a prosecution witness at Keith Ham’s 1996 federal retrial and said Kirtanananda Swami (Bhaktipada) had authorised it (AP).

The wider conspiracy is recorded on each person’s record, with its status: Tapahpunja’s guilty plea, the racketeering case against Kirtanananda Swami, and the allegations against Radhanath Swami and Kuladri, which rest on accounts by self-described participants and have never been tested in court.

Timeline

The case period, every status change in the accusations it involves, and the founding and closing of its places.

Showing 22 of 22
Charged Jun 5, 1986 · Tirtha Das Murder of Steven Bryant (Sulocana dasa), Los Angeles, 1986Charged February 1988 · Tirtha Das Murder of Steven Bryant (Sulocana dasa), Los Angeles, 1986Charged May 1990 · Kirtanananda Swami Federal racketeering and mail fraud, including alleged murder conspiraciesCharged May 1990 · Tapahpunja Conspiracy to murder Steven Bryant; racketeering and mail-fraud conspiracyConvicted 1991 · Tapahpunja Conspiracy to murder Steven Bryant; racketeering and mail-fraud conspiracyConvicted March 1991 · Kirtanananda Swami Federal racketeering and mail fraud, including alleged murder conspiraciesReported allegation Mar 14, 1991 · Radhanath Swami Alleged role in the 1986 conspiracy to murder Steven Bryant (Sulocana dasa)Convicted Aug 20, 1991 · Tirtha Das Murder of Steven Bryant (Sulocana dasa), Los Angeles, 1986Charged Jul 1, 1993 · Kirtanananda Swami Federal racketeering and mail fraud, including alleged murder conspiraciesCharged Jul 1, 1993 · Tapahpunja Conspiracy to murder Steven Bryant; racketeering and mail-fraud conspiracyAdmitted Mar 14, 1994 · Tapahpunja Conspiracy to murder Steven Bryant; racketeering and mail-fraud conspiracyCharged Jun 20, 1995 · Kirtanananda Swami Federal racketeering and mail fraud, including alleged murder conspiraciesAdmitted 1996 · Kirtanananda Swami Federal racketeering and mail fraud, including alleged murder conspiraciesAdmitted Apr 17, 1996 · Tapahpunja Conspiracy to murder Steven Bryant; racketeering and mail-fraud conspiracyReported allegation December 2006 · Radhanath Swami Alleged role in the 1986 conspiracy to murder Steven Bryant (Sulocana dasa)Reported allegation Dec 22, 2006 · Kuladri Das Alleged role in the 1986 conspiracy to murder Steven Bryant (Sulocana dasa)Documented allegation 2018 · Kuladri Das Alleged role in the 1986 conspiracy to murder Steven Bryant (Sulocana dasa)Documented allegation 2018 · Radhanath Swami Alleged role in the 1986 conspiracy to murder Steven Bryant (Sulocana dasa)Documented allegation Mar 21, 2019 · Kuladri Das Alleged role in the 1986 conspiracy to murder Steven Bryant (Sulocana dasa)Documented allegation Mar 21, 2019 · Radhanath Swami Alleged role in the 1986 conspiracy to murder Steven Bryant (Sulocana dasa) Case · 1986–1994 · The murder of Steven Bryant (Sulocana dasa), Los Angeles, 1986 Founded 1968 · New Vrindaban
196819701972197419761978198019821984198619881990199219941996199820002002200420062008201020122014201620182020
  1. 1968
  2. 1986
  3. 1988
  4. 1990
    • ChargedMay 1990 Kirtanananda Swami Federal racketeering and mail fraud, including alleged murder conspiracies Federal indictment CR 90-87 (US District Court, N.D. West Virginia): three RICO counts, six mail-fraud counts and two murder counts (Count IV, conspiracy to murder; Count V, aiding and abetting murder under 18 U.S.C. § 1958), plus a forfeiture count seeking all New Vrindaban community property (Fourth Circuit, 1995). The 1983 killing of Charles St. Denis and the 1986 killing of Steven Bryant were alleged among the racketeering acts; Count IV concerned Bryant.
    • ChargedMay 1990 Tapahpunja Conspiracy to murder Steven Bryant; racketeering and mail-fraud conspiracy Indicted with Keith Ham (Kirtanananda Swami) in the New Vrindaban federal racketeering case (CR 90-87, N.D. W.Va.). The Fourth Circuit's 1995 opinion records that he was a co-defendant on the RICO conspiracy count, the substantive RICO counts, the count of conspiracy to murder and the count of aiding and abetting murder (18 U.S.C. § 1958), and, with Steven Fitzpatrick, on one mail-fraud conspiracy count and one mail-fraud count. The Fourth Circuit rejected the government's appeal against his pretrial release on 10 September 1990 (No. 90-5695).
  5. 1991
    • Convicted1991 Tapahpunja Conspiracy to murder Steven Bryant; racketeering and mail-fraud conspiracy Convicted of RICO conspiracy (Count I), conspiracy to murder Steven Bryant (Count IV) and mail-fraud conspiracy (Count VI). District judgment entered 24 September 1991 (Fourth Circuit docket 91-5870).
    • ConvictedMarch 1991 Kirtanananda Swami Federal racketeering and mail fraud, including alleged murder conspiracies AP reported that the jury convicted him on all six mail-fraud counts and three of five racketeering counts, including being part of a conspiracy to kill Charles St. Denis. Sources differ on the two murder counts: the dissent in the Fourth Circuit's 1993 opinion describes him as found not guilty on Count IV (conspiracy to murder Steven Bryant), while the Fourth Circuit's 1995 opinion says the jury "failed to reach a verdict on the murder counts", as does the Justice Department's 1995 brief to the Supreme Court ("convicted petitioner on the RICO and mail fraud counts of the indictment but failed to reach a verdict on the murder counts"). On the RICO conspiracy count (Count I) the jury marked as proven every predicate act except the Bryant murder (1995 opinion). District judgment entered 24 June 1991 (Fourth Circuit docket 91-5350). Sentenced to 30 years (NYT).
    • Reported allegationMar 14, 1991 Radhanath Swami Alleged role in the 1986 conspiracy to murder Steven Bryant (Sulocana dasa) At Kirtanananda Swami's federal trial (CR 90-87, N.D. W.Va., Day IV, transcript p. 833), Dennis Gorrick (Dharmatma dasa), a prosecution witness, testified under oath that after the murder Kuladri (Arthur Villa) had told him "how Mr. Slavin, Mr. Wheeler and Mr. Sheldon were pushing like crazy for this to happen, and how he had told them not to do it"; asked whether Kuladri used those names, he said Kuladri "used their Krishna names". Slavin is Radhanath Swami's birth name. This is second-hand testimony given at another person's trial, not a charge or finding against Radhanath Swami.
    • ConvictedAug 20, 1991 Tirtha Das Murder of Steven Bryant (Sulocana dasa), Los Angeles, 1986 A Los Angeles County jury convicted him of first-degree murder with a special allegation of murder for financial gain; the Fourth Circuit records that he was "tried and convicted in California for the Bryant murder". An earlier trial had ended with the jury deadlocked 8–4 for acquittal (UPI).
  6. 1993
    • ChargedJul 1, 1993 Kirtanananda Swami Federal racketeering and mail fraud, including alleged murder conspiracies The US Court of Appeals for the Fourth Circuit vacated the convictions and remanded for retrial, holding that evidence of child molestation, homosexuality and the treatment of women had been unfairly prejudicial; one judge dissented in part (Nos. 91-5350, 91-5430 and 91-5870, consolidated; 998 F.2d 1247).
    • ChargedJul 1, 1993 Tapahpunja Conspiracy to murder Steven Bryant; racketeering and mail-fraud conspiracy The US Court of Appeals for the Fourth Circuit vacated his convictions and Keith Ham's, holding that evidence of child molestation, homosexuality and the treatment of women had unfairly prejudiced both, and remanded for retrial (998 F.2d 1247); one judge dissented, saying that Sheldon "was not implicated in child molestation or homosexuality" and that he would have affirmed. The 1995 opinion confirms: "We also vacated the convictions of Terry Sheldon".
  7. 1994
    • AdmittedMar 14, 1994 Tapahpunja Conspiracy to murder Steven Bryant; racketeering and mail-fraud conspiracy AP reported that, as part of a plea agreement, he pleaded guilty and was sentenced on 14 March 1994 to five years in prison on a conspiracy count involving the death of Bryant. Plea and sentence reported by AP; the court record is not online (pre-electronic filing). West Virginia University's finding aid for the Doktorski collection lists folders titled "United States v. Terry Sheldon, 1986-1994" (A&M 4646, Box 10, Folders 22–25), not seen.
  8. 1995
    • ChargedJun 20, 1995 Kirtanananda Swami Federal racketeering and mail fraud, including alleged murder conspiracies In No. 94-5507 (58 F.3d 78) the Fourth Circuit affirmed the denial of his double-jeopardy motions, holding that he could be retried on the forfeiture count and on the Bryant and St. Denis murder predicate acts; it held that the 1991 jury's failure to mark those acts as proven was not an implied acquittal. The Justice Department opposed his petition for Supreme Court review (No. 95-278), and the Supreme Court denied certiorari on 27 November 1995 (516 U.S. 986).
  9. 1996
    • Admitted1996 Kirtanananda Swami Federal racketeering and mail fraud, including alleged murder conspiracies At his second trial he pleaded guilty to the first count of the indictment (Count I, RICO conspiracy), admitting "mail fraud included in the racketeering count" but not "any connection to the slayings" (AP, 2004). The plea date is reported differently: AP (2004, 2011) places it at his second trial in August 1996 and the NYT says it came three days into that trial, while a published timeline of New Vrindaban dates the plea to 18 April 1996 and the sentencing to 29 August 1996; AP reported the retrial taking testimony on 17 April 1996. Court record (plea agreement / judgment, N.D. W.Va. CR 90-87) not yet obtained; the Federal Bureau of Prisons' inmate record (register no. 01120-087) shows that he served a federal sentence and was released on 16 June 2004.
    • AdmittedApr 17, 1996 Tapahpunja Conspiracy to murder Steven Bryant; racketeering and mail-fraud conspiracy Testifying at Keith Ham's 1996 retrial, he "said he participated in the surveillance of Bryant with Drescher and told Bhaktipada of the plot to kill Bryant" (AP). A second AP report quotes his account of Bhaktipada's reply: "He was reflective. Then he turned to me and said, 'Maybe that's what Krishna wants.'" He also testified that Bryant had spread rumours about Bhaktipada and had threatened his life, and that security was a concern after a 1985 assault on Bhaktipada.
  10. 2006
    • Reported allegationDecember 2006 Radhanath Swami Alleged role in the 1986 conspiracy to murder Steven Bryant (Sulocana dasa) Janmastami dasa, who describes himself as having taken part in the surveillance of Bryant, alleged in an internet statement that Radhanath Swami was a conspirator in the May 1986 murder (as reported by the GBC Executive Committee and in a 2007 essay on New Vrindaban). His statement, "New Vrindaban History, for the Record" (Sampradaya Sun, 22 December 2006), is quoted in later compilations; the original page has not been obtained.
    • Reported allegationDec 22, 2006 Kuladri Das Alleged role in the 1986 conspiracy to murder Steven Bryant (Sulocana dasa) Janmastami dasa, a self-described participant, wrote that Radhanath Swami gave the order to kill Bryant in "a prepared speech that he had delivered to Tirtha, Tapah Punja Swami and Kuladri many times before" (as quoted in a 2011 compilation).
  11. 2018
    • Documented allegation2018 Kuladri Das Alleged role in the 1986 conspiracy to murder Steven Bryant (Sulocana dasa) The self-published history Killing for Krishna (2018) and related writings describe Kuladri as "a prominent leader in the conspiracy to murder Sulochan". The account rests largely on statements given to its author by self-described participants and on his reading of 1991 trial testimony. West Virginia University's 2025 finding aid calls him a "key player in the conspiracy to murder Steven Bryant"; it describes the collection the author compiled and donated and is not an independent source.
    • Documented allegation2018 Radhanath Swami Alleged role in the 1986 conspiracy to murder Steven Bryant (Sulocana dasa) The self-published history Killing for Krishna "directly implicates Radhanath Swami" (E. Burke Rochford Jr., reviewing it in Nova Religio). The book relies largely on accounts given to its author decades later by self-described participants. In a 2016 preface to an earlier essay the author wrote that he did not accuse Radhanath Swami of being a member of the conspiracy, though he believed the evidence against him substantial.
  12. 2019
    • Documented allegationMar 21, 2019 Kuladri Das Alleged role in the 1986 conspiracy to murder Steven Bryant (Sulocana dasa) Jyotirdhama dasa's first-person account says Kuladri recruited him to handle the plot's telephone communications, and that soon after the murder Kuladri encouraged him to "get rid of" the switchboard's outbound call records. This is the participant's own untested account.
    • Documented allegationMar 21, 2019 Radhanath Swami Alleged role in the 1986 conspiracy to murder Steven Bryant (Sulocana dasa) Jyotirdhama dasa (Joseph Pollock Jr.), New Vrindaban's telephone operator in 1986, published a first-person account of his own part in the plot, issued as an addendum to Killing for Krishna. It names Radhanath Swami as a participant, partly from what others told him; it has not been tested in court.

People involved

5

Everyone named in this case, with their role and the current status of what they are accused of. Cleared people are listed for fairness.

Victims

1

People named publicly in this case who have a memorial page.

  • Sulocana dasa?–1986Former New Vrindaban member and critic of its leadership, shot dead in Los Angeles in 1986.

Documents

2
Opinion, United States v. Ham, 998 F.2d 1247 (4th Cir. 1993), Nos. 91-5350, 91-5430 and 91-5870 (appeals of Keith Gordon Ham, Steven Fitzpatrick and Terry Sheldon)PDF · 11 ppTrial transcript, United States v. Ham et al., CR 90-87 (N.D. W.Va.), Day IV, 14 March 1991: title page, index and pp. 831, 833, 835 (testimony of Dennis Gorrick)PDF · 5 pp

Sources

1
  1. [1]UPI, Hare Krishna hit man convicted, Aug 20, 1991

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