Roger Lee Ford Jr., aged 42, tragically lost his life on January 21, 2019, in Saint Petersburg, Florida. The incident occurred during an unofficial after-party for the city's Martin Luther King Jr. Day Dream Big Parade. The gathering, held at a gas station, saw over 100 people in attendance when gunfire erupted. Ford, along with 39-year-old Tywan Jeremiah Armstrong, was pronounced dead at the hospital following the shooting.
Another individual, Carlos Demetrius Young, sustained injuries but survived.
The investigation revealed that the shooting was a targeted attack orchestrated by Kermon Williams, also known as "The General," who saw Armstrong as a threat to his drug business. Williams enlisted the help of James Higgs Jr. and Jhaphre Higgs, providing them with an AR-15 rifle to carry out the murders. The Higgs brothers had previously attempted to kill Armstrong in September 2018, but he survived. On the day of the incident, they followed Williams' directive to make the murder as public as possible, opening fire on Armstrong's car in front of a large crowd. Ford, who was a passenger in the car, was hit 11 times and succumbed to his injuries.
The case saw significant legal proceedings, with Williams, James Higgs Jr., and Jhaphre Higgs being convicted of multiple charges, including conspiracy to commit murder for hire, drug conspiracy, and using a firearm in furtherance of a drug trafficking crime. They were sentenced to life in federal prison in October 2022. The investigation and subsequent trial highlighted the extensive efforts of law enforcement and forensic specialists in bringing the perpetrators to justice.
