With his murder trial starting in April, the defense team of a former anti-violence activist is having trouble bringing in witnesses.

Lumumba Sayers Sr., 47, and his defense attorney, Megan Downing, appeared in an Adams County district courtroom Thursday morning for a pre-trial conference, just weeks ahead of the two-week trial set for next month.

“The case is a difficult case,” Downing told 17th Judicial District Judge Jeffrey Ruff, adding that while the defense has been working diligently, it has not been able to get all of the “material and exculpatory” witnesses under subpoena to testify.

“They are scared,” Downing said. “People are very reluctant to be involved in the case. I’m talking about people who are not affiliated with any parties in the case.”

The defense currently has two of six potential witnesses ready to testify when the trial starts on April 13.

The trial comes nearly two years after Sayers Sr. allegedly shot and killed 28-year-old Malcolm Watson at Watson’s son’s fifth birthday party on Aug. 10, 2024 at a public pool in Commerce City.

Sayers Sr. faces charges of first-degree murder, two counts of felony menacing and two counts of tampering with evidence in connection to the incident, creating a stark contrast to the anti-violence work Sayers Sr. had done prior to the incident.

The former MMA fighter created the Heavy Hands, Heavy Hearts Center in Aurora in 2015. The foundation’s aim was to pull kids off of the streets with movie nights, Thanksgiving dinners, fitness classes, mountain camping trips and girl empowerment gatherings. Fundraising events were aimed at youth violence prevention.

Sayers Sr.’s 23-year-old son, Lumumba Sayers Jr., was shot and killed on Aug. 19, 2023 at 28th and Welton streets in Denver, just a year before the murder of Watson. The quadruple-victim shooting left Sayers Jr. and 25-year-old Gulian Musiwa dead.

Suspect Tyrell Braxton, 24, was arrested a month after the shooting on suspicion of first-degree murder and first-degree assault. He was one of eight alleged shooters in the incident, with 71 shots fired overall, according to arrest records.

He was eventually sentenced to 15 years in prison in March 2025 for illegally possessing ammunition. The murder charges were dropped because they could not be proven beyond a reasonable doubt, prosecutors said at the time.

Investigators believe that Braxton and Watson were friends, painting Watson’s murder as an act of revenge.

Ultimately, Sayers Sr. pleaded not guilty and his defense attorneys are trying to prove that there was another shooter entirely.

The defense still has to put forward an alternate suspect, but both the prosecution and defense said they know who the alternate suspect is.

Arrest records showed that Sayers Sr. had arrived to the party with his daughter. He is then suspected of walking up to and shooting Watson once in the head and four times in the torso.

Multiple witnesses also alleged that Sayers Sr. pointed a gun at a bystander, and took keys from Watson’s body, according to the arrest affidavit.

After the shooting, he walked over to the vehicle, talked to his daughter, and then returned with a different gun that he allegedly placed near Watson.

According to the prosecution, a U.S. Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives investigation found that the second handgun — which had not been fired and did not have a bullet in the chamber — was purchased by the former roommate of Sayers Jr.

Some witnesses said there was a second man in tan clothes shooting, as well.

Deputy District Attorney Aaron Brunskill said that he does not believe the defense’s witnesses are as crucial as they believe, adding that the witnesses did not see a second suspect shoot, but heard shots and then looked at the scene.

Brunskill said the prosecution would object to any continuance if the defense could not get all of the witnesses on board by mid April.

Still, the trial is set with a new pretrial conference occurring on April 10. Judge Ruff said he plans on bringing in around 100 jurors to choose from for the projected two-week trial.