Billy Ingram Convicted in Waukesha Gas Station Homicide

Billy Ingram, a 21-year-old Waukesha man on trial for the homicide of a gas station clerk during a robbery, was found guilty of intentional homicide by a jury Wednesday afternoon.

Ingram killed Nayyer Rana, an immigrant from Pakistan who became a U.S. citizen in his quest to provide a better life for his children. He was working at the Broadway Petro Mart, planning to purchase his own convenience store in the future, when he was fatally shot three times May 29, 2012.

Ingram will be sentenced Aug. 1 at 1:30 p.m., where he will learn if he will be sentenced to life in prison for the homicide conviction. He also was convicted of armed robbery, possession of a firearm by a felon and possession of marijuana.

Defense attorney Samuel Benedict told the jury they were being given pieces of a puzzle but the pieces didn’t fit. The defense attorneys argued in the beginning of the trial that police eliminated Ingram’s cousin as a suspect too soon.

The cousin was at work near the gas station and had been seen at work that day by coworkers. However, he had been reprimanded for being outside, Benedict said.

 “Billy Ingram is the little kid in this relationship,” Benedict said. “He is the little kid holding the bag. Billy Ingram is not a robber and he is not a person who would kill a person over a $200 Visa bill.”

Prosecutor Stephen Centinario asked the jury to look at the evidence. He questioned why Ingram, a felon, had a bullet and a casing in his pocket. Additionally, Rana’s blood was found on Ingram’s pants on his thigh just above the knee, he added.

 “That man over there is no kid,” Centinario said. “He is a killer. … It is time for him to be held accountable for what he did. No fancy words or arguments should interfere with your argument on this case.”

Investigators had no immediate suspects in the homicide on May 29, 2012. Rana’s family had offered an award for information leading to the suspect’s arrest, but the lead came when the Brookfield Police Department was investigating a burglary in that community. 

Early on the morning of May 30, 2012, Elm Grove police located a duffle bag and a backpack at a bus stop on Bluemound Road. The bags contained numerous packs of cigarettes, cigars and a laptop computer. 

Less than a half-hour later, Brookfield police were searching for a suspect in a home invasion burglary when they saw Ingram at Bluemound and Sunnyslope Roads, court records state. 

While questioning him, an Elm Grove officer approached and asked if he was missing some bags. Ingram said one of the bags found at the bus stop was his, but he denied ownership of the second bag which contained Rana’s keys, unopened cigarettes and cigars, smoking pipes, the computer and $100.30 in cash, according to the affidavit. 

Police said both bags had information linked to Ingram.
 
Ingram was unaware of the significance of the items he was carrying, Benedict said, despite Rana’s keys and cell phone being found on his person and his blood located on Ingram’s pants.

“This is not a guessing game today,” Benedict argued.

Ingram purchased “kids items” on his shopping spree at Bayshore Mall, with prosecutors allege were purchased with the stolen cash. In addition to a skateboard, he had a hat embroidered with the nickname “Killa B.”

“Killa B” is Ingram’s nickname he had weeks before the robbery, Benedict said.

“That is like saying he went to get a button that says I just killed somebody. … that doesn’t make any sense,” Benedict said.