DeAndre Shaheed, Lafeyette Robinson and Floyd Neal were arraigned Friday on charges of first-degree felony murder while armed, conspiracy, robbery, and other related weapons offenses in connection with the March 2013 shooting death of 31-year-old Akinwole Olu Williams.
The three men pleaded innocent to all charges.
Police found Williams on March 14, 2013 around 11:40 p.m. on the 1000 block of 44th Street Northeast lying on the ground suffering from a gunshot wound. He was transported to a local hospital where he succumbed to his injuries and was pronounced dead.
More than two months later Shaheed, 18, was arrested and charged in Williams’ death. Robinson, 19, and Neal, 20, were arrested several weeks later and charged with felony murder in connection with Williams’ death.
Charging documents in the case state that Williams may have been killed in a robbery gone awry.
In charging documents, prosecutors allege that Neal, Robinson and Shaheed set out to rob someone the night of the murder. When they saw Williams walking from the Deanwood Metro Station to his home in the 1000 block of 44th Street Northeast, the three men followed Williams to his house, court documents state.
One witness told police that Shaheed told Robinson and Neal that he was going to rob Williams, documents state.
When Williams attempted to enter his home the suspects approached him. Shaheed pointed a brown sawed-off shotgun at Williams, demanding him to hand over his property, the witness said according to charging documents.
Williams refused and pushed the shotgun away and moved closer to Shaheed. The witness then heard a gunshot, and then saw Williams grab his chest and fall to the ground, documents state.
Other witnesses to the murder told police that Neal and Robinson did not want to rob Williams, but Shaheed said, “What we out here for? I’m going to rob him.”
At a preliminary hearing last June a judge said that although Neal and Robinson did not want to rob Williams they aided and abetted felony murder with their presence at the scene.
The codefendants remain held pending a status hearing on March 21 with Judge Jennifer Anderson.
Update: An indictment document has been added to this post below.
