In the quiet, pre-dawn hours of January 11, 2018, in Petersburg, Virginia, Elwood Alan Humphries sat unsuspecting in the driver's seat of his tow truck. At 42 years old, the Williamsburg man, a father and grandfather, was focused on the task at hand: repossessing a 2012 Audi. He had just finished a phone call with his employer, River City Recovery, and with his earbuds still in, was preparing to hook up the vehicle.
The truck was backed into the driveway of a home on Westwood Drive, its engine running and lights on, a routine part of his job as a towing and recovery agent.
Inside the house, the car's owner, 21-year-old Anton B. Robinson, was aware of Humphries' presence. Robinson's girlfriend had purchased the Audi for him, but they had fallen behind on payments after making only one. Warnings of the impending repossession had apparently been disregarded. In a sudden and violent act, Robinson fired a single shot from the house. The bullet pierced the back window of the tow truck, striking Humphries in the head and killing him instantly.
When Petersburg police responded to a 'shots-fired' call shortly after midnight, they found a chilling scene. Humphries was deceased in his still-running truck, the doors locked, and a copy of the repossession order beside him. The nearby house was open, with lights and televisions still on, but it was empty except for a dog. It was clear to investigators that the occupants had fled in a hurry.
Their investigation quickly led them to Robinson and his girlfriend. Police confirmed the couple lived at the residence and had escaped to Robinson's mother's home in Jarratt after the shooting. Detectives set up surveillance on the girlfriend's car at the Jarratt address. When someone attempted to drive the car away, police initiated a traffic stop, which led to interviews with both Robinson and his girlfriend. Just over a year after the killing, Anton B. Robinson pleaded guilty to second-degree murder and using a firearm in the commission of a felony. His plea deal reduced the charge from first-degree murder, and he faced a likely prison sentence of 16 to 28 years.
