Father Shot During Football Game in Tragic Family Dispute
A Sullivan County man was found guilty this week of second-degree murder in the death of his own father.
On March, 16, 2026, Sullivan County District Attorney Brian P. Conaty announced that Drew Botsford, 48, of Neversink, was found guilty following a five-day jury trial.
The Murder of Lloyd Botsford
According to information revealed at the trial, at 6 p.m. on October 8, 2023, at 39 Bradley Road, Liberty, in the Town of Neversink, Drew Botsford reportedly got into an argument with his father, Lloyd, 71.
Then, according to the District Attorney, "immediately after the argument with his father, Drew grabbed a .22 rifle from his father’s bedroom closet, loaded one .22 caliber round in the chamber that he had located in his father’s top drawer, walked down the hallway in the residence, squatted down by the bathroom door, aimed and pulled the trigger."
Lloyd was reportedly sitting on the love seat in the living room watching football, when that one shot struck him directly in the skull.
Family members found Lloyd laying on the couch and called 911, who responded to the scene and administered life saving measures, but it was too late.
“The defendant’s actions on October 8th, 2023 were a culmination of bad choices that he has made during the course of his life. Despite all of the attempts and opportunities given to the defendant to rehabilitate himself and to forego criminal activity he squandered them. Instead, each time he chose himself and a life influenced by substance abuse. Lloyd Botsford was a loving husband, loving father, and a friend to many people across Sullivan County," Conaty stated. "In fact, he supported the defendant in his efforts to strip himself away from the demons of addiction. At the end of the day, the defendant’s actions were truly despicable and the defendant did what no son should ever do to their father. Lloyd Botsford did not deserve this ending to his life, a life that was dedicated to his family and this community. However, I want the community and his family to rest assured that this office will be steadfast in ensuring that the defendant receives a sentence commensurate with the defendant’s deeds and the callousness showed to a man who showed nothing but love to the defendant, his family, and this community. I want to thank Lloyd’s family for their cooperation and support in this investigation and express my condolences for their deep loss. I also want to thank the New York State Police for their hard work in this investigation in processing and preserving valuable evidence, interviewing witnesses, spending countless hours trying to track down and locate the defendant after this despicable homicide, and for procuring a confession in this case. Those efforts were instrumental in securing a conviction in this case.”
Drew, who was unemployed at the time, fled the house after shooting with $1,668.00. He also grabbed his mother’s groceries and put them into the back of his Aunt’s car outside of the police presence -on the side of the residence.
He reportedly went across the street to his Uncle’s house and asked for the keys to that car, but he was denied. So instead, the DA says Drew chose to hide in the back of his Aunt’s car. But while trying to hide from police, he "unwittingly locked himself inside unbeknownst to anyone else on scene."
Police were unable to locate him that day, but on the next morning, at 7:30 a.m., Drew Botsford used a tire jack he located in the back hatch area of the vehicle to break through the rear hatch window in his Aunt’s car and, subsequently, entered her home.
New York State Police were called and arrested Drew Botsford at the scene. While being interviewed he reportedly admitted getting into an argument with his father, Lloyd, prior to grabbing the .22 caliber rifle and shooting him in the head with one round.
While processing the crime scene, the New York State Police reportedly recovered a .22 caliber shell casing outside of a bedroom door, consistent with where Drew stated he was standing when he shot his father. Police said they also found the .22 caliber rifle laying against Lloyd Botsford’s bedroom dresser. The NYSP Crime Lab tested the gun for DNA evidence, which tested positive for Drew's DNA.
More From 97.7/97.3 The Wolf
