In March of 2020, the quiet community of Painter, Virginia, was shaken by the discovery of two missing persons, Princeton Howard Bragg, 37, and Lolita Monique Boggs, 38. The couple was reported missing from their home on Coal Kiln Road on March 25, 2020, after family members grew concerned when they couldn't be reached. A search was initiated, and later that day, their white BMW was found on the secluded Doughty Farm Road.
Upon investigating the vehicle, deputies from the Accomack County
Sheriff's Office made a grim discovery. Both Bragg and Boggs had been shot multiple times and were deceased. Bragg's body was found in the trunk of the car, while Boggs was in the backseat. The case was immediately treated as a homicide, and an intensive investigation involving the Virginia State Police, the Northampton County Sheriff's Office, and the Eastern Shore Drug Task Force was launched.
The investigation led authorities to 44-year-old Julian Travis Scarborough. Evidence presented during the trial revealed a complex situation involving a drug transaction. Scarborough, who was a police informant and had a history of drug distribution, had allegedly been angered by Bragg over a delayed cocaine deal. Cell phone data placed Scarborough in the same locations as the victims, and his DNA was found on the inside of Bragg's pants pockets, which had been turned out. Furthermore, video surveillance captured Scarborough kicking in the door of the victims' home after their disappearance.
In August 2024, after a four-day trial and over three hours of deliberation, an Accomack Circuit Court jury convicted Julian Travis Scarborough of the murders of Princeton Howard Bragg and Lolita Monique Boggs. He was found guilty on multiple charges, including two counts of first-degree murder, robbery, and several firearms offenses. Scarborough was already serving a 15-year sentence for drug distribution at the time of his conviction for the murders. He faced a potential sentence of 20 years to life for each murder count, with sentencing scheduled for November 21.
