VIRGINIA BEACH, Va. — The man accused of killing a Virginia Beach woman and dumping her body in a trash can, was found guilty on all charges he faced Thursday morning.
Gary Morton, 44, has been convicted of killing Marie Covington in August 2022. The charges Morton was convicted of include first-degree murder through abduction, abduction, malicious wounding and shooting at an occupied vehicle.
Morton, who was Covington's alleged boyfriend, pleaded guilty to concealing a dead body on Oct. 10.
Covington was in an abusive, off-and-on romantic relationship with Morton. The night of Aug. 17, 2022, Morton had a heated exchange with Covington and her family members outside of Covington’s home in Virginia Beach. Morton left the home and got in the driver’s seat of Covington’s white Ford Escape, and Covington joined him in the passenger seat to calm him. At some point, Covington tried to exit the vehicle, and Morton sped off without giving her a chance to get out of the car, according to court records.
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Shortly thereafter, in the 3700 block of Larkin Street in Norfolk, Morton was seen urinating in the middle of the street by a man who was trying to drive past.
When the man honked his horn for Morton to clear the way, Morton pulled out a handgun and fired several times at the man’s vehicle. One round struck the man’s windshield on the driver’s side, missing him, but the man sustained minor injuries from the glass shattering upon impact. The man sped off and called Norfolk police to report the shooting, but he was not able to identify Morton by name. The man also indicated that the shooter had been standing near a white Ford Escape that was occupied by a female but that the female did not appear to be moving.
Covington was reported missing by her family members the following evening when she did not return home. Morton fled to Pittsburgh following the Larkin Street shooting but returned to Norfolk days later.
On the night of Aug. 20, 2022, a Virginia State Police trooper traveling westbound on Interstate 64 in Norfolk noticed a white Ford Escape driving erratically and initiated a traffic stop.
Dash camera video from a Virginia State Trooper's vehicle gave a different perspective into the investigation.
The footage begins early in the morning of Aug. 20, as a Trooper attempts to pull an SUV over for suspicion of DUI in Chesapeake.
A chase then ensued, ending in Norfolk where the driver ditches the SUV and then runs from police before being found in a nearby neighborhood off of Tidewater Drive.
Morton was eventually detained by police and repeatedly denies he was the driver of the SUV as he becomes combative with police. "I'm about to pee in your car," he tells the trooper at one point.
Then, police piece together that the SUV belonged to Covington, who had been reported missing to Virginia Beach Police on August 18.
In the video, police can be heard saying they found women's clothing torn up in the SUV and a travel bag with clothes packed.
The interaction happened early in the morning of August 20, but it wasn't until about 10 p.m. that night when police issued an Ashanti Alert for Covington.
At about 11:30 that night, Covington was found dead in Norfolk.
While being questioned by Norfolk police investigators following the pursuit, Morton confessed to having shot and killed Covington, to hiding her body in a trash can in the Huntersville area, and to eluding the officers because he was scared to be caught, court records confirmed.
Investigators found Covington’s body, along with used cleaning supplies and a car seat cover, in an outdoor household trash bin the following night. It is unclear when — between her abduction and Morton fleeing to Pittsburgh — Covington died. The medical examiner ruled Covington’s cause of death as a gunshot wound to her left temple.
Following Morton’s arrest and the publication of his photo on local news, the victim from the Larkin Street shooting contacted investigators and identified Morton as the man who shot at him.
Virginia Beach Police later admitted failures in how the investigation was handled and the case prompted a review of how alerts for critically missing adults, called Ashanti Alerts, are issued.
On Thursday, Oct. 12, Morton was convicted of use of a firearm felony in the first offense, attempted malicious wounding, malicious shooting/throwing at a train or car, use of a firearm felony in the first offense, abduction by force or intimidation and guilty of first degree murder.
Morton will be sentenced before Judge Lindsey on Dec. 15.
