In the winter of 2020, a trip to a local convenience store in Memphis, Tennessee, turned tragic for Teon Wiley, a 37-year-old male. On the evening of January 30th, Wiley was outside the store on Overton Crossing Street when a man approached and asked him for a dollar. After Wiley declined and went into the store, the man waited for him to exit. As Wiley left the store and entered the small parking lot, just 800 feet from his home, the man followed him and shot him multiple times.
An acquaintance who knew Wiley from the bus found him on the ground and stayed with him until police and paramedics arrived.
Teon Wiley was rushed to the hospital, but he succumbed to his injuries. He was shot twice in the head, twice in the back, and once in the shoulder. His husband, Robert Wilkins-Wiley, became concerned when Teon did not return home. After seeing the crime scene being taped off down the street, he eventually called the hospital and was devastatingly asked to identify his husband by a distinctive tattoo.
The Memphis Police Department's investigation into Teon Wiley's murder has yet to result in an arrest, and the case remains unsolved. Investigators released a video of a person of interest, described as a man wearing a red sweatshirt and ripped denim jeans, who was seen entering the convenience store. Despite this, no one has come forward with information leading to an arrest. The motive is believed to be robbery, though Wiley's husband has questioned if it could have been a hate crime.
The aftermath of Teon's death was compounded by prejudice, according to his husband, who felt he was not treated with respect by hospital staff and that the investigation has been hampered by a lack of community cooperation, with at least one person refusing to help because of the couple's sexual orientation. Robert Wilkins-Wiley continues to advocate for justice for his husband, remembering him as a kind and forgiving person who had overcome a difficult childhood in the foster care system. He hopes that bringing attention to the case will lead to answers and closure for his family. The Memphis Police Department and Crime Stoppers have asked for anyone with information to come forward.
