WOODBRIDGE, Va. — A Virginia man will spend 60 years behind bars for his role in the deaths of two people in a Woodbridge apartment complex in 2022. Anthony Perkins was sentenced in a Virginia court on Thursday.
On May 15, 2022, Malik Davis and Christian Roberts were found dead in Davis' apartment. Both were shot. An investigation found that the two men were killed by two juveniles who had been interested in joining a gang.
Perkins, who was already a member of the gang, told the two young men that they needed to perform a criminal act in order to "prove their loyalty" before they could join.
Prosecutors say the two boys attended a party held by one of the victims. During the party, Perkins asked one of the boys if the victim was a member of a rival gang, and the boy said he was. Perkins said killing the man would be their "work" to get into the gang. The boys planned to shoot the other man because they thought he was armed and would shoot back at them.
The two boys followed through on their plan and killed both Roberts and Davis.
On June 14, Perkins was found guilty of two counts of first-degree murder, conspiracy to commit murder and gang participation involving a juvenile.
“Mr. Perkins is an adult who used his influence as a gang member to direct the murder of an individual at the hands of two juveniles. This ultimately ended with the senseless deaths of two young men. So many lives have been affected by this criminal behavior. I am proud of our team of prosecutors, investigators and police officers who worked so well together to hold Perkins criminally responsible for his actions. Gang violence will not be tolerated in our community,” said Commonwealth’s Attorney Amy Ashworth following the guilty verdict.
The jury recommended a sentence of 70 years in prison. On Thursday, Perkins was sentenced to 70 years in prison with 10 years suspended.
