Erica Alford, 29, was shot and killed on May 8, 2017, in the 5800 block of Newtown Arch in Virginia Beach. Officers who responded to reports of a shooting found Alford deceased at the scene and an injured man who was taken to a hospital.

Investigators identified the injured man, 24-year-old Richard Jerome Gregory, Jr., as the suspect and charged him with second-degree murder and use of a firearm in the commission of a felony. The case narrative presented at trial described a planned meeting for a drug transaction at the Mayfair Apartments. Alford arrived with a friend; after a brief absence from the vehicle, Gregory returned, asked about money, then opened fire. Alford returned fire, wounding Gregory in the hand and leg, and surveillance footage captured him limping away.

A jury found Gregory guilty of second-degree murder and use of a firearm in July 2018, and the jury recommended a 21-year sentence. In May 2019 a circuit court judge imposed 21 years in prison. Does anyone have additional information about Erica’s life or the circumstances leading up to the meeting that day?