His real name is Goldsin Nimnuan. He was murdered in Killeen on Jan. 12, 2007.

On March 28, the man who shot and killed Ek, Rigo-berto Martinez, was sentenced by a Bell County jury to 40 years in prison for the crime.

The weeklong trial revealed things about Ek, who will always be 25, which he hid from his family and many of his co-workers at Killeen Wal-Mart.

Ek used cocaine and smoked marijuana. He had some problems, but they did not define him. He was not a monster.

His stepfather, Burton Butler, tells stories about Ek that show his good side – the side that a few years ago confronted a friend and politely asked him to not curse in his home or in front of his father.

At Wal-Mart, where he worked the night shift as a stocker, workers were shocked to read about Ek’s transgressions, which came to light during the trial stories. His indiscretions away from work did not seem to influence his performance at work.

“He worked a shift with no supervision,” said Bo Malone, Wal-Mart assistant manager. “He was an excellent worker who got along with everybody in the store.”

At Ek’s family home in Killeen a certificate from Wal-Mart recognizing him for his hard work and dedication hangs on the wall.

“They (defense attorneys) tried to make him out to be some kind of addict or drug dealer,” said Boonsong Bulter, Ek’s mother. “There was never anything bad said about him.”

To some, Ghost may seem like an ominous, foreboding nickname, but its origin was actually innocent. Ek was quiet and had a closet full of white clothes.

“His friends gave him that nickname because he always wore white and you hardly knew he was there most of the time,” Butler said with a warm smile.

Ek’s mother tells stories that make the nickname even more appropriate.

Around the time he was shot and killed, she said she was awakened from a dream where her brother, who had been dead for 10 years, flashed before her face. Nearly 12 hours later she learned Ek had been shot and killed.

A few nights later family gathered at the Butler home, which is less than two miles away from where Ek lived. They were sharing stories about Ek when the side door suddenly swung open on its own.

His mother swears that it was Ek coming home to be with family. She understands he is gone but said sometimes she still talks to him as if he were present.

“Where are you at right now?” she says. “Come see mom in my dreams if you can.”

And she said he does. Boonsong said that since Ek has died, he has given her hugs and told her not to worry.

Ek bought the gun that was used to kill him after his house had been burglarized while he was at work. He also bought a pit bull to guard the house while he was away.

He was born in Phitsanuloke, Thailand, and came to America when he was 8 years old after his mother married Butler.

“He was so smart,” Butler says about Ek when he was a child. “He had so much snap. I didn’t speak any Thai at all but he was able to always make me understand what he wanted.

“He trusted too many people. That was his fault.”

Ek’s 13-year-old brother, Isaac, is soft spoken, like his brother. He attended parts of the trial but was shielded from seeing crime scene video and pictures.

When the family goes to visit the grave, Isaac usually just stays in the car.

Both of Ek’s cars have been moved to his parent’s driveway. When Isaac turns 18, he will own the cars.

Ek left everything to his younger brother, including his life insurance policy.

“He had a good heart,” his mother said.

The family has dealt with a range of issues since the murder. They say they have suffered mentally, financially and emotionally.

Butler put off retirement and is working two jobs.

Boonsong sees a psychologist for therapy and admits that she has been drinking too much.

“I don’t even have my wife anymore,” Butler said. “That’s not the lady I married.”

They anticipated that the trial would bring a measure of healing, but it ended up stirring up memories and opening new wounds.

“When they (the jury) came back with that 40-year sentence, it hurt us,” Butler said. “It’s not enough time. But it is a blessing because they got him. It’s a start.”

After the jury had rendered a guilty verdict, Paul Carey, the lead investigator on the case who also testified at the trial, met the family at the doors of the courtroom and brought a moment of relief.

He hugged Boonsong, looked at the family and said, “you’re good people.”

Butler shares a story about a woman who approached him at Wal-Mart after Ek’s death and told him about a time when Ek had helped her when her car ran out of gas. He put $10 in her tank and never asked to be reimbursed.

“When you’re like that, good things always happen to you,” Butler said. “Maybe it was just his time.”

promer@temple-telegram.com