On a late Wednesday night in Danville, Virginia, the sound of gunfire shattered the peace at the Woodside Village apartment complex on Piney Forest Road. On July 27, 2022, at approximately 10:50 p.m., police responded to calls of multiple shots being fired. When they arrived, they discovered 23-year-old Darick Lamont Richardson II in the parking lot near the F and K buildings, suffering from several gunshot wounds.
Medical responders acted quickly, airlifting the young man to Carilion Roanoke Memorial Hospital for emergency treatment. Despite their efforts, Darick Lamont Richardson II succumbed to his injuries and died the following morning, July 28, 2022.
The Danville Police Department immediately launched a homicide investigation, processing the crime scene and appealing to the public for information. They asked residents of the apartment complex and surrounding neighborhoods to check any surveillance cameras for potential evidence. Less than a month later, their investigation led to a suspect. On August 22, 2022, a Danville grand jury indicted 30-year-old Richard Lee Wilson Jr. on charges of first-degree murder, possession of a firearm by a convicted felon, and use of a firearm in the commission of a felony. At the time the charges were brought, Wilson was already being held in the Danville City Jail on an unrelated matter. He was held without bond for the murder of Richardson.
The legal proceedings against Richard Lee Wilson Jr. for the death of Richardson were set to move forward, with a jury trial scheduled for August 31, 2023. However, the case encountered a significant setback when a key witness for the prosecution died just two weeks before the trial was set to begin. This development led the Commonwealth of Virginia to decide against continuing the prosecution at that time, and the indictment against Wilson for Richardson's murder was terminated. Although the charges were dropped, the investigation into the death of Darick Lamont Richardson II officially remains an open case.
In a grim turn of events, the same apartment complex became a crime scene again nearly two years later. In June 2024, Richard Lee Wilson Jr. was arrested and charged with second-degree murder in connection with a different fatal shooting at the Woodside Village apartments. This time, the victim was 24-year-old Tasean Delvecchio Farmer, who was found with multiple gunshot wounds inside an apartment. Wilson had fled to North Carolina after this incident but was apprehended and taken into custody.
