On the late evening of March 29, 2025, gunfire struck a parked car on the 1800 block of South Gilbert Street in Iowa City. Inside that vehicle was 38-year-old Elijah Williams, a Black/African American man, who was fatally shot and later pronounced dead at a local hospital. Another person in the car was wounded and survived.

Iowa City police responded about 11:57 p.m. and treated the shooting as an isolated incident. Investigators focused on 44-year-old Antavis M.W. Watson, who was arrested on April 1, 2025, with assistance from the U.S. Marshals Service. Watson was charged with first-degree murder in Williams’s death, attempted murder for the injured passenger, and possession of a firearm as a felon. Eyewitness reports and surveillance footage are reported to show Watson approaching the vehicle before shots were fired.

Court documents and data recovered from Williams’s phone indicate the two men knew each other and had an ongoing feud that investigators believe may have led to the shooting. Watson has pleaded not guilty and was scheduled for trial in July. Does anyone have information about Elijah Williams, his movements that night, or what led to the feud?