On April 11, 2022, the quiet community of University Place, Washington, was disturbed by a grim discovery. Annabelle Hichens, a 33-year-old Caucasian woman from Renton, was found deceased in the backseat of a red Jeep Wrangler on Day Island Boulevard. Responding to a call about an unresponsive person, emergency services arrived to find that Hichens had sustained a fatal gunshot wound to the head. The Pierce County Medical Examiner's Office swiftly ruled her death a homicide, launching a thorough investigation into the circumstances surrounding her tragic end.
The investigation into Annabelle's death led authorities to 27-year-old Marcus Riley Langford. Already in custody for another murder, Langford was charged with the first-degree murder of Hichens. Investigators pieced together the events leading to her death, discovering that the red Jeep she was found in was a rental associated with previous criminal activity. A crucial piece of evidence found in the vehicle was a receipt bearing a name Langford used on his Facebook page. Further strengthening the case against him, surveillance footage from the scene showed a man, believed to be Langford, exiting the Jeep, wiping it down, and fleeing the area.
As the legal proceedings unfolded, a motive for the senseless act of violence came to light. A witness informed detectives that Langford had been angry with Hichens and her boyfriend, believing they had set him up to be robbed. This alleged betrayal reportedly fueled his deadly actions. Langford, who had a prior manslaughter conviction, was ultimately sentenced to nearly 62 years in prison for the death of Annabelle Hichens and another, separate killing.
