In Utica, New York, the discovery of a man's body inside a parked vehicle on a spring day in 2016 marked the beginning of a lengthy investigation into his death. The man was identified as Lawrence Edwards, a 60-year-old White/Caucasian male. On May 7, 2016, his body was found in a car situated behind a residence at 301 Rutger Street. An autopsy would later confirm that Edwards had been shot, and the Utica Police Department subsequently launched a homicide investigation.
At the time of his death, Edwards was experiencing homelessness and was a familiar face in the areas around the Rescue Mission of Utica and Hope House.
For more than two years, the case of who killed Lawrence 'Larry' Edwards remained a mystery that investigators from the Utica Police Department's Major Crimes Unit and Criminal Investigation Division worked to unravel. The community was concerned, particularly for the safety of its vulnerable homeless population. In an effort to generate leads, the Utica Police Department partnered with Mohawk Valley Crime Stoppers to offer a financial reward for information that would lead to the arrest and conviction of the individual or individuals responsible for Edwards' murder.
The breakthrough in the case came in July of 2018 when authorities arrested a Utica man named Raekwon Winston, who was 22 years old at the time. Winston was charged with second-degree murder and two counts of criminal possession of a weapon in connection with the death of Lawrence Edwards. The case then moved through the legal system, culminating in a trial where the evidence gathered by investigators was presented. The trial concluded with the conviction of Raekwon Winston for the murder of Lawrence Edwards.
In October 2019, justice for Lawrence Edwards was delivered when his killer was sentenced. Raekwon Winston, then 23, received a sentence of 25 years to life in prison for the second-degree murder charge. He was also sentenced to 15 years for each of the two counts of criminal possession of a weapon, with those sentences to be served concurrently with his murder sentence. The sentencing closed a chapter in a case that had highlighted the dangers faced by those living on the streets and brought a measure of closure to a community that had long awaited answers.
