Jake Branam was the captain of "The Joe Cool," a charter boat that was found abandoned in the Florida Straits in late September of 2007. The two men who hired the boat, Guillermo Zarabozo and Kirby Archer were later found in a life raft and charged in connection with the shooting deaths of Branam and his three crew members.

In July of 2008, Kirby Archer plead guilty to killing Jake Branam and Branam's wife, Kelly, but claims that Zarabozo killed the other two crew members. Archer is scheduled to be sentenced on October 2, 2008.CBS4.com: "Joe Cool" Murder Suspect Wants Statements Tossed (August 13, 2008)