Milton Roman, a 28-year-old Black man from Brooklyn, New York, was a father, son, and brother remembered by loved ones as a strong, determined, and amazing man. His life was cut short on the night of February 2, 2019, while he was visiting an acquaintance in Roanoke, Virginia. Just before 11:30 p.m., police were called to an apartment in the 1300 block of Maple Avenue SW for a report of a person shot.
Inside the apartment, officers found Milton Roman with multiple gunshot wounds.
Investigators later determined that Roman and his acquaintance, 33-year-old Jonathan Billings of Roanoke, were the victims of a home invasion. Billings sustained only minor injuries during the incident. Emergency responders rushed Roman to Carilion Roanoke Memorial Hospital, but he died from his injuries.
For more than four years, the investigation into Roman’s killing continued as his family waited for justice. The Roanoke Police Department pursued leads, but no arrests were made, and the case remained a painful, unsolved homicide for the community. The hope for a resolution, however, never faded.
A major breakthrough came in the fall of 2023. Investigators identified Akoye Dazour Johnson, a 32-year-old Roanoke resident, as a suspect. The evidence was presented to a Roanoke Grand Jury, which handed down indictments against him. On October 5, 2023, members of the U.S. Marshals Capital Area Regional Fugitive Task Force located and arrested Johnson without incident. He was initially charged with first-degree murder, robbery, and use of a firearm in the commission of a felony.
The case concluded in court when Akoye Johnson pleaded no contest and was found guilty of the downgraded charges of voluntary manslaughter and breaking and entering with the intent to commit a felony. On March 12, a judge sentenced him to a total of 20 years in prison, with eight years suspended. Johnson will serve 12 years and will then be subject to five years of probation and five years of good behavior requirements upon his release.
