CHESAPEAKE, Va. — A 22-year-old from Chesapeake has been found guilty of murder, robbery, abduction, and illegal disposal of a body, according to the Commonwealth’s Attorney for the City of Chesapeake.
Raheem Lamont Cherry, age 22, was convicted by a jury after four days of testimony and three hours of deliberation.
According to the Commonwealth's Attorney, Cherry abducted, robbed, killed, and hid the body of Laura Miles of Upstate New York in 2021.
61-year-old Laura Miles, was reported missing under suspicious circumstances and was found dead on May 17 2021 in a wooded area in the 4600 block of Taylor Road.
News
19-year-old charged with murder after missing Chesapeake woman found dead
According to the Commonwealth's Attorney, Miles was leaving her apartment in Western Branch at around 5 a.m. when she was attacked in her truck. She was on the phone with her husband at the time who heard her scream before the phone went dead.
The Commonwealth said Cherry stabbed Miles eleven times before abducting her in her truck and disposing of her body in a ditch behind a nearby YMCA.
Police charged Cherry in Miles' death in May of 2021. Police said that at the time, Cherry lived at the Taylor Pointe Apartments, which is located right across the street from the wooded area where Miles’ body was dumped.
Miles’ black truck was also found a short walk away from where Cherry lived.
Cherry will face a sentencing hearing on July 23, 2024.
