‘Whatever happens, Aaron needs justice’
High-profile case of MMA fighter’s killing nears its end
It’s been almost four years since a group of young assailants carried out the home invasion murder of mixed martial arts fighter Aaron Rajman in West Boca, authorities say.
The apparent motive: to rob the 25-yearold athlete, known as “The Matzoh Brawler,” of his money and marijuana.
Now, the high-profile case is drawing closer to an end. Just two months ago, authorities arrested the sixth and final person accused in the July 3, 2017, killing.
Two of the perpetrators took plea deals and began serving prison sentences. Palm Beach County prosecutors are looking to
use their testimony to land convictions for the other four people charged in grand jury indictments.
Juries could hear how the group — whose ages ranged from 17 to 28 and included roommates and people who just met each other — joined for a night of crime that turned deadly. The trial dates will depend on how quickly the court system returns to normal amid the pandemic.
Rajman’s friends are ready for it to conclude. They remember Rajman as a beloved member of South Florida’s Orthodox Jewish community, lauding his “heart of gold” and concern for others. In the week before he died, he taught Palm Beach County school police officers an Israeli self-defense method called Krav Maga, which are skills to disarm an attacker.
“Whatever happens, Aaron needs justice,” said Benjamin Szlamkowicz, a neighborhood friend who went to synagogue services with Rajman. “He was still a good dude regardless of what happened in this case. He always wanted to help people and scratch everyone’s back.”
A drug robbery gone bad
Rajman had cited struggles with drugs and the law as a teenager, according to an essay he posted on the website, MMAFutures. com. His father died from lymphoma cancer when he was 19.
In 2011, Rajman told the South Florida Sun Sentinel that his dad was in his corner for his first fight and he stuck with MMA because that’s what his father would have wanted. Rajman reportedly had an 8-1 win-loss record as an amateur, and 2-2 record after turning pro in 2014.
While prosecutors haven’t provided a description of the murder case, court records show Rajman was actively dealing drugs from a home he shared with relatives in the Sandalfoot Cove neighborhood, just east of State Road 7 and south of Palmetto Park Road.
Records show the shooting happened just before 10:30 p.m., right after Rajman returned home from a latenight meal at Land-Lubbers Raw Bar & Grill in Coconut Creek.
Detectives used cellphone records, surveillance video, witness statements and social media records to identify the suspects who fled the crime scene in the 22700 block of Southwest 65th Terrace, according to investigation reports obtained by the Sun Sentinel.
A key lead was a call Rajman received from a teenager named Summer Church, only minutes before he was ambushed. She told detectives that she was following instructions from an acquaintance to make sure Rajman was home.
Church had smoked weed there before.
“I swear to God I thought it was a robbery,” she said during an interrogation, adding that she remained in a car parked outside. “I didn’t know there was any guns.”
Rajman told Church he could not entertain visitors.
Moments after the call, Rajman and his girlfriend were startled by a man in a hooded sweatshirt who asked, “Where’s the s—-?”
As Rajman tried to disarm the intruder, he was shot multiple times, including a fatal chest wound.
Another man then came in and joined the unidentified shooter in rummaging through Rajman’s belongings, while a third man waited outside the bedroom, the girlfriend said.
As the robbers bolted to the getaway car, they dropped a bag of marijuana, Rajman’s wallet and phone, and a martial arts sword, records show.
Rajman’s girlfriend told detectives his pot customers dropped by daily. Investigators saw a dry-erase marker board above Rajman’s nightstand, with the words: “brownies, dabs, live resin, oil cartridges, salted caramel blondie, magic mushrooms and moon rocks. Ask about this week’s specials.”
Three people, including Church, were arrested two months after the shooting.
The investigation continued and in late 2019, three more individuals were indicted on charges of first-degree murder and home invasion robbery with a firearm.
Assistant State Attorney Marci Rex declined to comment about the prosecution of the men awaiting trials.
Six indicted in the killing
Here’s a rundown of those charged or convicted:
Summer Church: Then a 17-year-old Olympic Heights High junior, she is now 20 and serving a 10-year prison term. She pleaded guilty to a reduced charge of second-degree murder and has agreed to testify for the prosecution against the co-defendants.
Jace Swinton: Then Church’s boyfriend, he is 22 and also locked up for 10 years after taking a plea deal on a second-degree murder charge that also requires him to testify. He said he was with Church in the car, but never set foot in the Rajman home that night: “You know, I smoke weed here and there. But, like, a murderer is one thing I’m not.”
Roberto Ortiz: The 22-year-old from west of West Palm Beach planned the robbery, according to Swinton. Ortiz has said he was framed, and last year he asked a judge to dump a court-appointed attorney, Valerie Masters, after accusing her of calling him a “low-life criminal.” Ortiz later dropped the matter; Masters could not be reached for comment.
Austin Baker: A two-time convicted felon who has spent more than six years in state prisons, including for a gun conviction, the 29-year-old Baker lived with Ortiz and considered him a brother. Baker has denied going to West Boca on the day of the shooting. “I don’t understand why I’m even being held,” Baker wrote Circuit Judge Rosemarie Scher in December. Public Defender Carey Haughwout says the case against Baker comes down to Church and Swinton’s finger-pointing. “There are no eyewitness identifications, DNA or fingerprint evidence,” she wrote.
Cameron Burgess Clark: From Riviera Beach, the 26-year-old cousin of Baker once told a detective, “I don’t even go to Boca.” Clark’s private-retained lawyer, Gregg Lerman, said Swinton once claimed Clark was involved but then was unable to identify him. Lerman says his understanding is that authorities believe Baker was the shooter. “Mr. Burgess Clark is planning on going to trial,” Lerman said. “The state’s case is not strong by any means.”
Alton Anders Jr.: The West Palm Beach man with the street name “Kink P” was arrested Feb. 8 this year, some 15 months after his indictment by a grand jury. Church identified Anders as the getaway car driver, records show. In a statement to a detective, Anders, 32, said he had never been to the Boca area, though he called Baker his “partner.” It’s not clear from the court records why it took so long to bring him into custody; his lawyer thinks the coronavirus pandemic might have contributed to a delay.
Defense attorney Franklin Prince, tapped by the court to represent Anders, said he’s reviewing files handed over by the prosecutor.
“There seems to be limited evidence against my client,” Prince said. “There are photo lineups where he was not identified.”
Rajman’s family declined to comment for this article.