Carlos Cordova, a 28-year-old Hispanic man, was killed in a shooting that stemmed from a robbery in Portsmouth, Virginia. On the morning of March 5, 2023, police were called to the 260 block of Dale Drive for a report of gunshot wounds. Officers arrived around 7:42 a.m. to find two victims. One man, 22-year-old Carlos Castro-Murillo, was pronounced dead at the scene.
The other, Carlos Cordova, had suffered life-threatening injuries and was rushed to a local hospital, where he died the following day.
The double homicide launched an investigation by the Portsmouth Police Department that quickly identified two suspects. The first was 40-year-old Brian A. Johnson, and the second was 27-year-old Akea M. Faison. While the search for the suspects began, authorities asked the public for any information that could lead to their whereabouts.
A breakthrough in the case came on May 9, 2023, when police arrested Brian Johnson. He was charged with two counts of aggravated murder, two counts of conspiracy to commit aggravated murder, robbery resulting in death, and several weapons offenses. Johnson was held at the Portsmouth City Jail without bond.
Akea Faison remained at large for over a year. A coordinated effort between the Portsmouth Police Department and U.S. Marshals task forces tracked her to Jackson, Mississippi. On November 7, 2024, authorities arrested her as she was heading to work. Faison was charged with two counts of first-degree murder, two counts of conspiracy to commit murder, robbery, conspiracy to commit robbery, and three counts of use of a firearm in the commission of a felony. She was held in Mississippi to await extradition to Virginia.
Brian Johnson was later tried for his alleged role in the killings. In August 2026, a jury found him not guilty of the murder charges.
