In the stillness of a November evening in Birmingham, Alabama, the life of 45-year-old Anthony Cornelius Blount Jr. was brought to an abrupt and violent end. On Thursday, November 16, 2023, police responded to reports of a single-vehicle crash in the 900 block of Arkadelphia Road. Upon their arrival, they discovered Blount unresponsive inside his vehicle.
He had sustained a gunshot wound and was pronounced dead at the scene.
The initial investigation by the Birmingham Police Department quickly shifted from a traffic accident to a homicide inquiry. Detectives began piecing together the events that led to the fatal shooting. Their efforts soon focused on two individuals, Demarcus Emmanuel Sears, 23, and Acie Muleek Milton, 22. The nature of their connection to Blount and the circumstances that precipitated the deadly encounter were central to the investigation.
Within a week of the discovery of Blount's body, the investigation culminated in the apprehension of the two suspects. Sears was taken into custody on November 21 by the U.S. Marshals Gulf Coast Regional Fugitive Task Force, the same agency that apprehended Milton the following day. The Jefferson County District Attorney’s Office subsequently issued capital murder warrants against both men.
The charges allege that Sears and Milton were involved in a robbery that resulted in the death of Anthony Blount. Evidence presented in court documents suggests that the suspects were in Blount’s vehicle when the fatal shot was fired, leading to the crash. Following the issuance of the warrants, both Sears and Milton were held in the Jefferson County Jail without bond, awaiting further legal proceedings. The case continues to move through the criminal justice system as prosecutors prepare for trial.
