Girlfriend reveals final moments of murder victim's life

FRESNO, Calif. (KFSN) -- According to testimony, right before he was shot, Brajoni Freeman knew he was in trouble.

He was on the phone with his girlfriend who could hear what was going on until the line was suddenly disconnected.

Freeman was a barber who worked out of his home, but he had another side job that prosecutors believe was the motive for murder.

The last person who talked to Freeman took the stand Thursday. She described the last conversation with her longtime boyfriend.

We aren't identifying her because of safety concerns. She said, "He answered the door and he said what's up with it?"

Prosecutor William Terrence responded, "What's up with it? Have you heard that term before?"

Freeman's girlfriend replied, "He was greeting them."

Everything seemed normal until she said she heard someone say, "Get on the ground."

Then, Freeman's final words, "He said, 'Babe I'm being robbed,'" she tearfully told the court.

Prosecutors say there was a lot of foot traffic at Freeman's apartment near Fresno State, in part because of his barber business, but also because investigators say he sold marijuana and cocaine.

His girlfriend was the first to arrive after the murder to find him critically hurt on the floor of the kitchen and his usually tidy bedroom in complete disarray.

She called 911 and Officer Darin Chandler showed up three minutes later.

"He was lying in a pool of blood, we checked for a pulse, he did have a pulse. He was breathing, but he was unconscious," said Chandler.

Investigators say the suspects, later identified as Marquise Graves and Jahleel McGruder were after the drugs and money that were kept in the apartment.

But defense attorneys grilled the victim's girlfriend and her son about moving items at the crime scene and what they knew about the drug dealing operation.

The preliminary hearing will continue tomorrow.