Police said the brothers went to a Liberty City apartment because they feared for their sister’s safety.

MIAMI, Fla. — A 31-year-old Miami man was held without bond after police said he fatally shot his girlfriend’s two brothers May 2 inside her Liberty City apartment after they came to protect her from him.

Antwan Carter faces two counts of first-degree murder in the deaths of Jaheim Pierre, 23, and Gianni Pierre, 28. The case moved quickly from a family dispute to a double homicide investigation, with Miami police citing witness statements, security video, a recovered 9 mm Glock 43 and statements Carter allegedly made after the shooting.

The shooting happened at an apartment at 5329 NW 17th Ave., in the 5300 block of Northwest 17th Avenue. Police said the brothers arrived because of what their sister described as a past history of domestic violence involving Carter, her boyfriend of about four years. According to the arrest affidavit, Jaheim Pierre began arguing with his sister after he arrived. Carter then stepped into the argument, and Jaheim Pierre punched him, police said. A fight followed among the three men. Carter later told officers he left the apartment to get air and went to his car for his wallet and keys. Investigators said security video showed him leaving and returning with an object that he placed in his front right pocket.

The woman locked the front door while Carter was outside, police said. According to the affidavit, Carter became angry, banged on the door and shouted for the men to open it. Police said the woman urged her brothers not to open the door. The affidavit says security video showed Carter pacing for several minutes before Jaheim Pierre opened the door. Carter then charged into the apartment while reaching toward his pocket, police said. Seconds later, several gunshots were heard and a woman screamed. Officers later said the woman ran from the apartment barefoot with blood on her feet and clothing. “I am the one; I have the firearm,” Carter allegedly told an officer after police arrived.

Police said Gianni Pierre was sitting on a couch when he was shot. Fire rescue crews found him bleeding near the couch and rushed him to Jackson Memorial Hospital’s Ryder Trauma Center, where a doctor pronounced him dead. Jaheim Pierre was found bleeding in a closet and was pronounced dead at the apartment by Miami Fire Rescue. Investigators said Jaheim Pierre ran toward his sister after he was hit and collapsed on top of her as Carter kept firing. A walkthrough of the apartment found spent casings and projectiles in different areas, according to police. The affidavit says officers also found a pool of blood near the couch and another in the closet.

The woman told police Carter blamed her after the shooting. According to the affidavit, Carter sat on the edge of a bed and told her, “See what you made me do?” She replied, “I told you to leave,” and then ran out of the apartment. The statement became a central detail in the case because it placed the sister inside the apartment after both brothers had been shot and before she escaped. Police said she approached officers covered in blood and identified Carter as her boyfriend and the two wounded men as her brothers. Her account also gave investigators the motive for the brothers’ visit: concern that she was in danger because of the couple’s history.

Carter gave police a different account of the final moments before gunfire, according to the affidavit. He said both brothers “squared up” with their fists raised as if they were ready to fight again. He claimed that was why he opened fire. Police still arrested him at the scene and said he surrendered a Glock 43 from his right pocket. The affidavit does not say the brothers had weapons. Carter’s self-defense claim will likely become a key issue as prosecutors and defense lawyers move through court filings, witness interviews and evidence review. The first-degree murder charges are among the most serious under Florida law.

The case reached bond court two days later, on Monday, May 4. A judge ordered Carter held without bond as prosecutors moved forward. He later pleaded not guilty, according to court reporting on the case. At this stage, the charges are allegations, and Carter is presumed innocent unless proven guilty in court. Prosecutors are expected to rely on the girlfriend’s statement, Carter’s alleged admission to police, the recovered handgun, the surveillance video and the physical evidence from inside the apartment. Defense attorneys may challenge the sequence of events, the meaning of Carter’s statements and whether the earlier fight affected what he believed when he reentered the apartment.

Neighbors and relatives described a fast, frightening scene. Local video reporting said gunfire rang through the apartment for several seconds before a woman was heard screaming and then running into the hallway yelling that he had shot them. At a memorial held for the brothers, relatives remembered Jaheim and Gianni Pierre as close family members whose deaths left a large wound. One man identified in local coverage as Gregory said the brothers were “the life of the party.” The vigil shifted the public view of the case from a police affidavit to a family’s loss, with candles, grief and questions over how a visit meant to protect their sister ended with both brothers dead.

Carter remains accused in the deaths of Jaheim and Gianni Pierre, and the next major steps are expected in Miami-Dade court. Investigators have not publicly said whether more evidence will be released before the case advances to later hearings.

Author note: Last updated May 24, 2026.