A 26-year-old man was murdered in Chesapeake after his own birthday party. The killer: his cousin.

Chesapeake — A 28-year-old man pleaded guilty Monday to killing his cousin, who was in town visiting for his own birthday when he was fatally shot last year.

Bobby Singleton Jr. faces up to 78 years in prison in the death of 26-year-old Diquan Brown, who lived in Chicago. A few days before his death, Brown had flown to Hampton Roads to celebrate his birthday with his cousins.

On Jan. 10, 2020, Singleton drove Brown, their cousin Christopher Montgomery and a fourth person to a Virginia Beach bar. When they were leaving about an hour later, the cousins offered to drive because Singleton appeared intoxicated, prosecutors wrote in a summary of their evidence filed in court.

Singleton insisted on taking the wheel, but drove erratically and “at an excessive speed,” which led to an argument, according to prosecutors.

Singleton and Brown kept fighting when they got to Montgomery’s home in Chesapeake’s South Norfolk neighborhood. Montgomery tried to break up the argument and pushed Singleton outside the house to separate the two, prosecutors wrote.

Montgomery heard gunshots as he went to lock the door, and a bullet hit him in the thigh. Another bullet grazed Brown’s forearm and struck him in the abdomen.

According to prosecutors, Singleton pulled the Ring doorbell camera off the house, took his gun and Montgomery’s and drove away.

Police said they were called to the home in the 1000 block of Cascade Blvd. just before midnight. Medics took both men to a hospital, where Brown died.

Singleton pleaded guilty in Circuit Court to second-degree murder, wounding Montgomery, shooting at an occupied building and two firearms charges. The Portsmouth man is scheduled to be sentenced by a judge in May.

Margaret Matray, 757-222-5216, margaret.matray@pilotonline.com