In the early morning hours of May 28, 2019, the life of 31-year-old Anthony Welch, a White/Caucasian male, was tragically cut short in Tulsa, Oklahoma. His body was discovered in a parking lot near 31st and Yale, where he had been fatally shot. The night of his death, Welch had made a brief trip to a Walgreens around 1:30 AM before returning home. Shortly after, he borrowed a neighbor's car and left for an unknown destination around 2:00 AM.
Three hours later, security personnel found his body.
The investigation into Welch's death uncovered a sinister plot that began on the dating app 'Plenty of Fish'. Detectives determined that Welch had been lured to the City Gardens Apartments, located near 31st Street and the Broken Arrow Expressway, under the pretense of meeting a woman. Upon his arrival, he was ambushed, robbed, and then murdered. His phone, identification, and keys were all missing from the scene, suggesting that robbery was the primary motive for the attack.
In September 2019, authorities made a significant breakthrough in the case, arresting three individuals in connection with the homicide. The suspects were identified as Satreia Turner and two teenagers, Sauntavia Crawford and Elijah Rowe. Investigators revealed that the 15-year-old Crawford had been the one to entice Welch to the apartment complex. Once there, 16-year-old Rowe allegedly robbed and shot him. At the time of his arrest for Welch's murder, Rowe was already incarcerated on unrelated charges, including shooting with intent to kill, and also had pending criminal charges in Texas. Crawford and Rowe were subsequently charged with first-degree murder, while Turner faced a charge of accessory after the fact for her role in the crime.
