Antoine Jermaine Preston, 47, known to friends as Smoke, was found dead inside an overturned pickup after shots were reported in the 1400 block of Fayette Street near the Maplewood Apartments in Martinsville, Virginia. Calls came in about gunfire at approximately 11:43 p.m. on September 30, 2023; first responders located the truck down a steep embankment after bystanders directed them to the vehicle. Shell casings were found on the road, and investigators concluded the shooting caused the fatal crash. An autopsy was ordered by the state medical examiner’s office in Roanoke.

The investigation identified and produced arrests. Martinsville resident Delano Tomaz Ross, 46, was arrested on Spring Street and charged with first-degree murder, use of a firearm in the commission of a felony, shooting from a vehicle to endanger persons, shooting into an occupied vehicle, possession of a firearm and ammunition by a violent convicted felon, and reckless handling of a firearm; he was held without bond.

Preston’s family and friends remembered him as a loving father and a talented artist. Does anyone who knew Antoine or who was in the Fayette Street area that night have information that could help investigators?