Three men have been sentenced for their involvement in the 2018 murder-for-hire case that resulted in the death of Gregory Davis in Barnet, Vermont. The United States Attorney for the District of Vermont announced that Chief United States District Judge Christina Reiss handed down sentences to Berk Eratay, 38, of Las Vegas, Nevada; Jerry Banks, 37, of Gardener, Montana; and Aron Ethridge, 45, of Henderson, Nevada on September 25 and 26, 2025.
A fourth individual involved in the conspiracy, Serhat Gumrukcu, 42, of Los Angeles, California, was convicted by a jury earlier this year and is awaiting sentencing. Gumrukcu faces a mandatory life sentence with his hearing scheduled for November 24, 2025.
At sentencing hearings held in Burlington federal court, Judge Reiss imposed prison terms and supervised release for each defendant: Eratay received 110 months in prison followed by three years of supervised release; Banks received 200 months in prison followed by five years of supervised release; and Ethridge received 140 months in prison followed by five years of supervised release.
According to evidence presented at trial and court records, Gumrukcu arranged the murder after Davis threatened legal action over Gumrukcu’s role in a failed oil commodities deal. The investigation revealed that Gumrukcu’s motivation included concerns over an ongoing multi-million-dollar biotech merger involving his alleged discovery related to HIV treatment. To execute the plan, Gumrukcu relied on Eratay to coordinate with Ethridge as an intermediary. Ethridge then recruited Banks as the hitman.
On January 6, 2018, Banks posed as a Deputy U.S. Marshal and abducted Davis from his home in Danville. Davis’s body was found the next day near his residence in Barnet. Investigators found communications indicating tension between Gumrukcu and Davis over the oil transaction. These findings led authorities to interview Gumrukcu twice; he provided false statements during both sessions. The investigation used cellphone data, purchase records, banking documents, emails and messages to identify those responsible for orchestrating and carrying out the crime.
Acting U.S. Attorney Michael P. Drescher stated: “I commend the efforts of the Federal Bureau of Investigation and the Vermont State Police for their collaborative investigation of Gumrukcu, Eratay, Banks, and Ethridge, and the crimes associated with Davis’s murder.” He also acknowledged other agencies including Internal Revenue Service Criminal Investigation; Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives; Homeland Security Investigations; as well as various law enforcement bodies nationwide who helped identify all participants in the plot.
The prosecution team consisted of Assistant U.S. Attorneys Paul J. Van de Graaf and Zachary Stendig with support staff Karen Arena-Leene and Erin Thompson-Moran. Defense attorneys included Allan Sullivan and Mark Oettinger representing Eratay; Assistant Federal Public Defender Steven Barth representing Banks; and Mark Kaplan representing Ethridge.
