In the early hours of May 18, 2019, the life of 18-year-old Matrell Michael Eugene Johnson, a Black / African American male, was tragically cut short in a burst of gunfire. Johnson, along with his friend Royal Ceiz Abram, also 18, and two other teenagers, were inside a vehicle in the parking lot of the Iowa Smoke Shop at 70 Kirkwood Court SW in Cedar Rapids, Iowa.
At approximately 1:20 a.m., an individual approached their vehicle and fired multiple shots inside, ending the lives of Johnson and Abram and critically injuring a 19-year-old male and a 19-year-old female.
The investigation into the double homicide quickly led Cedar Rapids police to identify persons of interest. Through surveillance footage from the smoke shop, authorities were able to piece together the events of that fatal morning. The footage showed the shooter exiting a vehicle, firing into the teenagers' car with a handgun, and then fleeing the scene in the same vehicle. This critical evidence led police to name 26-year-old Andre Defaunte Richardson as the primary suspect in the killings. An arrest warrant for murder was issued for Richardson, who was considered armed and dangerous.
Several weeks later, in June 2019, Andre Richardson was apprehended and charged with two counts of first-degree murder, among other serious charges. The investigation also revealed an accomplice, 24-year-old Alexandra Lanee Nicole Smith, who was the driver of the getaway vehicle. Smith was found to have assisted Richardson after the murders, helping him purchase new clothes and a cell phone in Missouri. In June 2020, Andre Richardson pleaded guilty to two counts of second-degree murder and other charges. He was subsequently sentenced to a total of 75 years in prison. The motive for the shooting was a case of mistaken identity; Richardson believed the vehicle the teenagers were in was associated with an individual from a prior dispute. Alexandra Smith was convicted of being an accessory after the fact.
