BOCA RATON, Fla. (CBS12) — Boca Raton police have arrested a suspect in the April shooting death of a Plantation man whose killing drew attention because of a whistleblower lawsuit he filed months before his death.
The Boca Raton Police Department announced Friday that 58-year-old Willie Byrd Jr. was arrested in connection with the murder of 37-year-old Arman Motiwalla.
According to police, detectives obtained an arrest warrant Thursday following what they described as an extensive investigation. Byrd was taken into custody Friday afternoon and is charged with first-degree murder with a firearm. He is being held at the Palm Beach County Jail.
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Motiwalla was found dead at about 1:45 a.m. on April 8 in a parking lot in the 350 block of Camino Gardens Boulevard. Investigators said he was discovered next to his vehicle, suffering from multiple gunshot wounds.
The case attracted additional attention after CBS12 learned Motiwalla served as chief operating officer of Synergy Insurance Affiliates and had filed a federal whistleblower lawsuit against his former employer, Innovative Partners, in June 2025.
In the lawsuit, Motiwalla alleged he was fired after raising concerns about what he claimed were improper business and insurance-related practices, including alleged misuse of employee benefit plan funds and other violations. The company denied wrongdoing in court filings, and the...
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