PHILADELPHIA – Five Philadelphia men have been charged with the 2006 kidnapping and murder of a city native, Shamari Taylor, bringing an end to a nearly 18-year-long cold case. According to a federal indictment, Kevin Holloway, 45, Mark Scott, 48, Linton Mathis, 50, Atiba Wicker, 47, and Kenneth Tuck, 51, were arrested and charged with conspiracy to commit kidnapping resulting in death, kidnapping resulting in death, and aiding and abetting.
The indictment alleges that Taylor, 38, and his then-21-year-old girlfriend were kidnapped from West Philadelphia on August 26, 2006, by several men impersonating police officers. Taylor’s girlfriend was released hours later, but Taylor remained missing until August 21, 2018, when law enforcement recovered his remains in a shallow grave in North Philadelphia.
Law enforcement established that Taylor and his girlfriend were abducted and transported to a warehouse in North Philadelphia, where Taylor was interrogated and tortured in an effort to ascertain where he stored additional cocaine and money. Taylor was then suffocated to death and his body was discarded in Fairmount Park. Several days later, four of the kidnappers moved Taylor’s body, burying him in a vacant lot in North Philadelphia that has since become the parking lot of a charter high school.
On the day after the abduction, Taylor’s family home in West Philadelphia was ransacked by two armed men who shot Taylor’s mother and sister in their heads; both women survived. In September 2006, Kenneth Tuck was arrested and charged locally in Philadelphia County in connection with the kidnapping. In 2008, after two trials, Tuck was acquitted of all charges in Philadelphia County.
The investigation revealed that Tuck was recruited to join the conspiracy plot to kidnap and rob Taylor while posing as a police officer, and that Kevin Holloway and his drug-dealing associates, Mark Scott and Linton Mathis, participated in the kidnapping and murdered Taylor in the warehouse after torturing him. The investigation further revealed that Taylor’s friend, Atiba Wicker, and another acquaintance helped plan the crime, in part, by luring Taylor to the abduction site on August 26, 2006.
“Anyone who commits a heinous crime and is still walking free years later might just assume they’ve gotten away with it,” said U.S. Attorney Jacqueline C. Romero. “Well, they should think again. We and our law enforcement partners will doggedly pursue justice for victims of violence and accountability for the perpetrators — no matter how long it may take.”
The investigation was a collaborative effort between the FBI, the Philadelphia Police Department, and the U.S. Attorney’s Office. The indictment marks a significant milestone in the pursuit of justice for Shamari Taylor and his loved ones. “Today’s charges are the culmination of years of relentless pursuit of justice for Shamari Taylor and his loved ones,” said Philadelphia Police Commissioner Kevin Bethel. “The nature of this crime, with its elaborate planning, impersonation of law enforcement, and brutal execution, underscores the commitment of law enforcement to bring closure to cold cases and hold those responsible fully accountable.”
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Key Facts
- State: Pennsylvania
- Agency: DOJ USAO
- Category: Violent Crime|Murder
- Source: Official Source ↗
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