In the fall of 2021, family and friends grew deeply concerned for Allene Elizabeth “Beth” Redmon, a 54-year-old White woman from Harrisonburg, Virginia. Beth was last seen on or around October 24, and in the following weeks, she did not show up for work, return to her apartment, or contact her loved ones. Those close to her reported that this was highly out of character, prompting an investigation by the Harrisonburg Police Department.
The search for Beth came to a tragic end on November 23, 2021. Her body was discovered in an undeveloped lot in Harrisonburg, but she was not alone. The remains of another missing woman, 39-year-old Tonita Lorice Smith of Charlottesville, were found a short distance away in the same lot. Investigators determined that the two women had died at different times from what was later described as blunt force trauma.
The investigation quickly led police to a suspect, Anthony Robinson, a 35-year-old man from Washington, D.C.
He was arrested and charged with two counts of first-degree murder and two felony counts of concealing, transporting, or altering a dead body. Robinson was subsequently held without bond at the Rockingham County Jail.
As law enforcement from multiple jurisdictions began to coordinate, a more disturbing picture emerged. Authorities alleged that Robinson met his victims on dating sites, met them at motels, and then used a shopping cart to transport their bodies after killing them. This led police to publicly label him the “Shopping Cart Killer.” Robinson also became a person of interest in other missing persons and death investigations in Fairfax County and Washington, D.C., with police expressing concern that there could be more victims.
The case against Robinson proceeded to court. In September 2022, a judge found there was probable cause for the first-degree murder charges and moved the case to the circuit court for review by a grand jury. The most recent development occurred in November 2022, when a judge granted a motion from Robinson’s defense team for a mental health evaluation as they considered pursuing an insanity defense.
