Former Bachelorette star Ivan Hall‘s brother, Gabriel Hall, was arrested and charged with murder on August 31, In Touch can confirm.
Gabriel was arrested in Abilene, Texas, for the murder of of Carlos Veliz Jr., TMZ reported. According to the outlet, Gabriel and Veliz were allegedly involved in an argument at around 1:30 a.m. on August 31. The verbal altercation allegedly ended when Gabriel allegedly killed Veliz by shooting him in the head.
Authorities connected Gabriel to the crime by viewing surveillance footage in the area that allegedly linked a car he was renting to the scene of the crime. Cops also say they found a spent shell casing in the rental vehicle as well as evidence of gunshot residue on Gabriel’s hands and clothing.
Gabriel was taken into custody at the Taylor County Jail and charged with felony murder in the first degree. His bond was initially set at $400,000.
His brother, Ivan, made his reality TV debut on season 16 of The Bachelorette with lead Tayshia Adams. He discussed his relationship with Gabriel several times with Tayshia, 31, on the ABC series. During one episode, the 28-year-old opened up to Tayshia and revealed he helps to raise Gabriel’s 6-year-old daughter because his brother has had several run-ins with the law.
During another episode, Gabriel made a surprise appearance on the show when he joined Ivan on his hometown date with Tayshia. As Gabriel walked through the doors, Tayshia appeared shocked and Ivan immediately broke down in tears of happiness and Gabriel embraced his brother.
“The biggest surprise of the night was that my brother was here,” Ivan said in his confessional. “It was just like, such a range of emotions and it just meant the world for me. It’s very special for me to have my brother here. He grew up by my side and knows me best at the end of the day. He knows me best at the end of the day, he’s my best friend so I’m very excited for Tayshia to meet him.”
While sitting across from his brother, Ivan continued to gush about their bond. “I told everybody, you know, I love my mom, I love my dad but you’re definitely the most influential person in my life. And you know, no matter what, you always know I got your back and that we’re best friends,” he told Gabriel.
Ivan made it to Tayshia’s top three contestants but she eventually chose Zac Clark as the recipient of her final rose. The couple got engaged on the finale, which aired in December 2020, but split in November.