How Did a Soldier’s Homecoming End in Tragedy? | Forensic Files

Hi, crime junkies. I'm Ashley Flowers. And I'm Brit. And the story I have for you today is one that shouldn't even be
a story. The murder of a young soldier home on leave was potentially witnessed by a hundred or so people. The problem
is no one is willing to tell police what happened. But maybe that changes today.
This is the story of Solomon Robinson. It's Friday, April 3rd, 1998. And even though it's kind of chilly at night,
there is a party going on in St. Mary's Park in the South Bronx, New York. There's a big crowd of people hanging
out. Everyone's having a good time when suddenly, just before 1000 p.m., a gunshot rings out.
Someone calls police telling them that a man has been shot. And within minutes, EMTs and officers from the NYPD are on
the scene. But it is absolute chaos. I mean, people are fleeing in every direction trying to get away from
whatever just happened. And a couple of guys on a green motorbike are speeding down a nearby sidewalk. I mean, true
pandemonium happening here. But this particular area of the park is pretty well lit, and responders are able to
find the victim easily. It's a young man laying face down on the grass near a pathway that runs past some basketball
courts. Blood is soaking through his black and yellow striped jacket. And when EMTs turn him over, they realize
that there is nothing they can do. They see that in addition to the gunshot wound on the left side of his chest, he
has also been stabbed multiple times and his face and neck are slashed, too. Now,
the victim is declared dead at 9:50 and police secure the scene and start gathering evidence. They collect dozens
of bottles and cans, remnants of the party that had been going on. And they also recover a black Nike skull cap and
a wristwatch near the young man's body. What they don't find is a weapon or any shell casings left behind from the gun
that was used or any identification for their victim. I mean, if he had a wallet
on him, that's gone. But if robbery was the motive, his killer left behind an expensive starter jacket that the victim
was still wearing. And NYP detective Robert Klene told our reporter Nenah that this particular type of jacket was
often the target of robberies in the9s. So right off the bat, they're thinking this is something else. And I'm not sure
how, but even without a wallet or a license on this person, police managed to identify the victim pretty quickly as
19-year-old Solomon Robinson, affectionately known as Solo or Juny to his parents, who police learned live in
an apartment building just outside of the park. But word travels fast here, and by the time police make it to the
front door of the apartment that Solomon grew up in, his mom, Edna, has already been told the awful news. Now,
investigators know this isn't the safest area. In fact, according to the New York
Daily News, it is one of the most violent police precincts in the city. But Solomon's murder doesn't match the
circumstances that they so often encounter. He's not in a gang. He doesn't sell drugs. And he had never
been in any trouble. actually he had worked hard to carve out a different life for himself. Like he joined the
army last year, the year before in August of 97, right after graduating high school. And Edna tells detectives
that Solomon is a private stationed at Fort Benning in Georgia. Oh, so he doesn't even live in that area anymore.
No, no, he's just home on leave for the week. So he was actually scheduled to head back to his base in like a couple
of days. It would have been Monday, April 6th when he went back. And this time coming home, this was his first
trip home since Thanksgiving. and his parents had been so happy to see him, especially his dad, who had been dealing
with some serious health issues. I mean, he was having seizures and stuff like this. The rest of his family was so
happy as well. I mean, one of his brothers, Russell, who lives in Connecticut, was actually planning to
come visit him the very next day. But now, instead of coming to hang out with his little brother and and, you know, do
whatever it is they used to do when they were younger, like, he's coming home to
support his family and to try and find out what happened. And it's so heartbreaking. He said that when his mom
called to tell him the news, like he couldn't even understand her at first. And he thought that she was trying to
tell him that his father had died, right? Like he was the one having all the health issues. And it took him a
minute to realize that she was talking about Solomon because it just seemed so incomprehensible.
So Russell travels back to the Bronx with a cousin Melody who lives near him in Connecticut. And by the time they get
there, which is the same night, Solomon's body is still in the park. And no matter how hard they try, they can
hardly process what's going on. Like again, sure, the area had a reputation, but this was Solomon's home turf. Like,
he and his family knew most everyone in the area, and he'd spent countless hours
playing basketball on the very courts he was killed by. I mean, he was even playing earlier that day. So, they can't
think of anyone who would want to do this to Solomon. So, had he like still been in the park after playing
basketball or was he at that party that was going on? So, well, right. That's what police want to find out. His mom
tells them that she knew that he was playing basketball that afternoon, but then he came home at some point that
evening and then a friend stopped by at around 8:00 p.m. And just an FYI, Detective Klein asked us to use
pseudonyms for any witnesses and suspects that we discussed. You'll kind of see why later, but we're going to
call this friend that came by, Gail. Gail and Solomon left the apartment at around 8:30. And at the time, Edna
thinks that he was going to walk Gail somewhere, but like that's really all she knows. And police learn that Gaye is
local. She lives in an apartment about a mile away. And she's actually home when
they go looking for her. And she tells investigators that she and Solomon are romantically involved. But she doesn't
know everything about his movements that night because yes, she did meet up with
him. But after they left his parents' place, they just hung outside his building with some other people for a
while. And then at some point, he he being Solomon left with someone. But Gail didn't know who. She just knew that
they were going to go to the corner store. Now, she says she stayed back and when they all got back, not too long
after, Solomon hurried upstairs. She doesn't know where or like to what apartment or even why he seemed to be in
a hurry, but when he came back down, he was wearing a jacket, which he had actually borrowed from a friend who
lived in the building. And presumably, this is the one that he was wearing when he was killed. Now, Gail says that
Solomon told her he loved her and he would be back. and then he walked off in the direction of the park. So, she
didn't go with him. That's what she's saying. Yeah. And she says she was still hanging around with friends when she
heard he'd been shot. And she said she tried to go over to the park, but with all of the cops and activity, like she
couldn't even get close enough to see anything. So, she just went back, hung around his building for a while, maybe
hoping this was all a mistake or waiting to hear more information, but eventually
she went home. A lot of details in this case are kind of fuzzy. Like there is no
information about the identities of the people that she and Solomon were supposedly hanging out with that night
in front of the building or why she went home instead of sticking around. But whatever investigators were able to
glean that maybe isn't written down in black and white for me like decades later, they seem to determine that
Solomon wasn't going to that party or hanging out in the park at all. He was just passing through it. I would assume
that's because he said he'd be back. That might be why. Truly, I don't know. But if he wasn't going to the party,
then where was he going? Right. And why would this well-liked guy with no enemies to speak of who's just home for
a few days be the target of such a brutal attack? And if no one could tell them why, then surely someone could tell
them who, right? Because there were so many people around when he was killed. So, the lead detective on this case
really hits the streets hard to canvas. And just a quick aside, because I can't not tell you this, and it kind of has
nothing to do with the case except like I mean it kind of does. Like the lead detective's name is Loser Lane. That No,
that can't be his real name. Do not only is it his real name, like we I mean I obviously have like 45 follow-up
questions. We found out Loser has an older brother. Do you even want to guess what his older brother's name is?
I don't even know what kind of person names their child loser. I can't even begin to guess. His brother's name is
Winner. No, I don't know if this was like a social experiment or what, but according to an article in the Chicago
Tribune, their dad let their sister pick Loser's name and that's what she chose and then they actually like went with
it. And what I think is so ironic and why I like say this is this is a social experiment is that Loser was this great
student. He was this athlete who went on to become a respected NYPD investigator.
His name while Winner became this small time crook and was arrested dozens of times. And I could literally talk about
this all day long. Yeah, I'm now obsessed with this. We have to get back to this case, but you're going to hear
me say potentially loser. I'm just going to call him Detective Lane. So, Detective Lane or Lou as the guys call
him, he's out canvasing with other investigators, but they're just hitting like wall after wall after wall trying
to get anyone to talk. is like pulling teeth. Like no one wants to be labeled a snitch. And the statements they do get
are kind of all over the place. Like they hear Solomon was attacked by three or four people. Some describe the
perpetrators as light-skinned Hispanic men. But like the details even there are like shaky at best. Like maybe one had a
limp. Maybe one was wearing a tan jacket. Maybe it was the guys that were on the green dirt bike thing, whatever
driving near the park after the gunshots. Maybe maybe maybe. Like all of these may go nowhere. Police do get
excited for a minute when they catch wind of a rumor that someone actually videotaped the party, but no one can say
who might have taken the video. And it seems like almost every time they identify someone who was supposed to
have been at this party, that person has a suspiciously perfect alibi and was definitely not at the park when the
shots rang out. If you go by the statements that detectives were getting, I mean, it seems like no one was at the
park when Solomon was actually killed, which we know isn't true. And speaking of the party, they hear it was held to
celebrate a woman's birthday, but when they track her down, she completely denies that it was her party at all. So,
they're basically like chasing smoke at every turn. Exactly. I mean, this is true even of some of the people that
Solomon was like closest with. Like when they go interview Gail a second time, all of a sudden she has a new story for
them. Now Gail says that she met up with her good friend Solomon and then he went
to the corner store to get a drink and that's the last time she saw him. I'm sorry, good friend. Just friends now.
Although she adds that he was maybe hoping for something more, but like that wasn't going to happen cuz she tells
them she's actually dating another service member, someone that Solomon maybe knows. I'm sorry, who? like no one
that was around. Like the guy that she is supposedly dating is stationed at a base in Colorado at the time. And if
anyone was wondering, Gail assures police like, "Nope, there's no tension between the two men." So all that stuff
about him like rushing upstairs, getting the jacket, going back out, like all of
that in her story is just gone. Yeah. From how the police report reads. Yes. And listen, investigators had already
kind of been doubting the truthfulness of her account before she changed the details around cuz her story, like the
sequence of events, like it just didn't make much sense to them. But now they're
really wondering what her deal is. And this kind of throws the whole narrative into question. Let's say that Solomon
was actually walking to the store that Gail mentioned the last time she saw him. He wouldn't have needed to go into
the park at all to get there. like it was right down the street from him. And police don't seem to think that a wallet
was taken off Solomon. They don't think that he had one on him that night. So, no wallet, no money. So, how could he
buy something? Exactly. Like, if he was going to go to the store, like he didn't
go prepared. Solomon's brother Russell and their cousin Melody, they think that the whole corner store story is bogus.
And they actually have a completely different theory about where Solomon was maybe going. They think that he was
walking Gail somewhere that night, somewhere that to get there would have taken them through the park, which is
what his mom, Edna, originally thought. Right. Right. And if Gail's lying and she actually was with Solomon when he
was killed. I mean, that's not just an eyewitness, it's like an essential eyewitness, right? Maybe. Right.
Detectives think probably, but for whatever reason, she's not admitting to that. So, was he going to the store? Had
he already gone to the store and then went into the park? Like, who was he with? I don't know. But this shows just
how many lies and halftruths detectives were getting, even from the people who claimed to care about Solomon. Now,
meanwhile, while they're doing all of this canvasing, the autopsy is done. And that reveals just how vicious this
attack truly was. The medical examiner finds four stab wounds in his back. Each one at least 3 in deep. They find
another on his hip. But those actually weren't what killed him. It was the single gunshot that proved fatal.
It tore through his heart, through his left lung, and his stomach. When they recover the bullet, they find it's
aluminum jacketed. So, it's either a 9 mm or a 38 caliber. It's actually another one of his injuries that really
catches their attention. He has I mentioned a slash across his face. So, this slash starts at one corner of his
mouth and stretches all the way past the other side. Picture something like the markings of like Heath Ledger's Joker in
the Dark Knight. Okay? And that cut is what's known as a buck 50. And the name comes from the 150 so stitches that it
takes to actually close it up. And police recognized this immediately as a hallmark of gang violence. But that
doesn't make any sense. Like Solomon wasn't in a gang. No, he wasn't. But detectives are thinking that his killer
or killers might be. So over the next few months, they cast a wide net looking into all sorts of criminal activity
happening in the area. They investigate a local drug sales operation to see if maybe there's any connection there. And
every time they make a nearby arrest and confiscate a weapon, they request ballistic testing to compare it to the
bullet that killed Solomon. They even look into recent robberies around the park despite not believing that
Solomon's murder was about theft. So, they're basically hoping to catch these guys for something else and then connect
it back to Solomon. That's their best bet because nothing else is moving this case forward. They process dozens of
bottles and cans from the park. They're looking for fingerprints, but every time
they come up empty. They even get the story featured on TV and they managed to get a $10,000 reward approved for
information, but none of that helped either. So, they're hoping that something else, some other crime might
be the thing that gives them a lead. And that is exactly what happens. But not until like 8 months after his murder in
January of 1999. That's when Detective Lane gets a promising lead from a Bronx narcotics
officer who tells him that during a drug arrest a few days earlier, they took someone into custody. I'm going to call
this guy Frank. And Frank indicates that he has some information about Solomon's
homicide. So, detectives go visit him in jail on a Tuesday. This is January 12th.
And he gives them a detailed account of what he says happened that night. He tells them that he was outside of a
building that overlooks the park and he saw Solomon Robinson walking through with a couple of young women. Now,
meanwhile, two men were walking in the opposite direction. And when their paths intersected, one of them called out to
Solomon, telling him, "Come here." Solomon stepped back and Frank then heard gunshots.
And then a second man cut Solomon with a knife while the shooter just like stood
by watching. And then after that, both of the attackers left on foot. And listen, this is better than just Frank
telling them what happened. He is able to tell them who did it. A pair of cousins who we're going to call John and
William. Now, there's some confusion over who was the shooter, who was the stabber. Police reports refer to William
by a specific nickname, but the nickname that they use was actually John's nickname. So, it's not clear who
allegedly did what during this attack. Now, of course, Frank isn't a perfect witness by any means. Like, not only is
he in jail, but some of his information is like iffy, right? Like, he claims he heard four shots. We only know Solomon
was shot once, but I mean, it could have been more. When people were calling 911,
did they say one shot or like shots? No. So, actually, I'm pretty sure the call that got called in was for shots fired,
but I also know that's a general like dispatch code that they use. So, it's like not a description necessarily of
what happened and I don't know the words that the caller used. I haven't actually
heard the call. So, all of that TBD, there's another issue. Even though we got a lot of like maybe this, maybe that
statements from people early on in the attack, like pretty much every witness account did say that the men who killed
Solomon were Hispanic. William and John are not Hispanic. They're black. But it's not uncommon for witness
accounts to be off, especially in what seems like a really chaotic situation like this was, right? Yeah. Yeah. With
big crowds, stuff for sure. I mean, there were a ton of people running around that night after the attack. It I
mean, it's possible that someone was seeing Hispanic men like running off and like maybe that's what added to the
mixup. But like it doesn't matter to Frank. Frank's like, "Listen, I saw it and I know the guys like there is no
confusion here. And by the way, if you don't trust me, good news. I wasn't alone. He says there's another witness
who can back him up. [Music] Two branches of the same tree, two pieces of a soul.
Where one sister goes, the other will be. for she is but half of the whole. The missing half.
Pre-order your copy at ashleyflowers.com. Frank says this other person saw the murder with him and this was a
15-year-old girl that we'll call Brenda. Now, Brenda actually lives in the building that Frank was at when the
murder took place. And according to Frank, they witnessed it together while they were smoking on Brenda's fire
escape or like roof or something. So, as soon as they're done talking to Frank, police go right to Brenda's apartment to
speak with her, and they get a little creative with their approach. They don't tell her that Frank gave them her name.
They actually tell her they know she saw Solomon get killed because they have surveillance video of her on the fire
escape. Now, the bluff works, and her account is very similar to Frank's. She tells investigators that her mom doesn't
know she smoked cigarettes, so she was sneaking one on their fire escape, which gave her a clear view of the park. She
says she saw Solomon walking with two girls. And at the same time, she saw John and William. They're like leaving
the handball courts, which are like right next to the basketball courts. Their paths cross and somehow the
situation escalated quickly like into murder. Does Brenda mention Frank at all? Like is he part of her narrative,
her story? Well, so she tells detectives that she and Frank were in the park earlier that day smoking weed, but I
don't know if she says anything about like them being on the fire escape together when Solomon was killed. Like
it's not clear from her written statement. Okay. So, what about the girls that Solomon was with? Did Frank
or Brenda describe them? Like, was one of them Gail? So, there's no description in the report of her statement, so I
can't say for sure. But I mean, like I know police were highly suspicious that one of them was Gail, right? But real
quick, let me tell you more about John and William because as investigators dig into their backgrounds, they realize
that they have a lot of reasons to be suspicious of these two, more than just these statements. Now, they can't find
any indication that either of them knew Solomon, although there's certainly a chance of that because Jon lived
practically across the street from him. But both men have criminal records dating back to the early '9s, including
drug charges. And more importantly, both men have rumored ties to the Nine Trey Gangsters, which is a set of the United
Blood Nation, which is basically like an East Coast version of the Bloods. Get trying to get most like mainstream as I
can. And this is separate from the original gang on the West Coast. Got it. So, this really catches law
enforcement's attention because getting initiated into a West Coast blood set typically involves targeting a rival
gang. But the United Blood Nation, including its subset nine trade gangsters, were known for going after
non-gang members, and their preferred method of attack was a buck 50, that like facial slash that we know Solomon
had. But if these guys were already in a gang, why would they need to do some kind of initiation? Uh, well,
investigators believe that it might not have been about joining, but maybe about
moving up the ranks. Oh, and I had to get like a whole crash course on this from the detectives, but basically gang
hierarchies can be complex and sometimes members have to prove themselves to gain
more status or more responsibility within the organization and this kind of attack. This is exactly
the signature that these guys were known for. Obviously, this is all promising, but there is a big problem. Brenda
refuses to cooperate further. Like, she just completely shuts down. I mean, she's probably scared. Probably
terrified. I mean, I would be, too. But with their key witness unwilling to move
forward, the investigation is at a standstill. And just like that, the momentum that they had built up just
disappears and the case goes cold for years. Wait, don't they still have Frank? Why
can't they use him? I think it comes down to credibility issues. Like, Brenda's not in jail, right? like she
doesn't have any charges looming with the two of them together. There could be a strong narrative to build, but like if
you just have Frank without her, it's kind of like they don't feel like they can move forward. So, they let some time
go by during which Frank gets out of jail, doesn't exactly stay out of trouble, a probation violation, gets an
arrest warrant put out on him. So, he's like MIA trying to fly under the radar when detectives on Solomon's case decide
like, "Hey, we should stir this up again." and they go looking for him in 2005. Again, they don't find him, but on
May 25th, 2006, police finally arrest him. And less than 2 weeks later, the homicide task force gets an unexpected
call from Riker's Island. It's Frank, and he is ready to cooperate on Solomon's case, even if he doesn't get
anything in return. Now, he says he's only been dodging them because he thought that they were just trying to
like trick him into getting arrested on the warrant he had. Like, that's why he was dodging the homicide guys. But now
that he's locked up anyway, like he's like, "I might as well talk." Now his story is the same, but this time he
confirms what was only suspected before. According to Frank, John and William were both Bloods members, and he says
that they sold crack in the neighborhood, but they still have the same problems they had years ago. Like
Frank's in jail. It doesn't feel super credible to put him out on his own. And though they track Brenda down and her
story is the same, she is still too afraid to talk. She even thinks that someone might be watching her. Like
bottom line is she's not going to work with them. So without Brenda, they got nothing that's going to stand
up through a full trial. And with no one else coming forward, nothing happens again on this case for years. And as you
can imagine, I mean, NYPD has new cases coming in every single day. Yeah. I mean, I've watched Law and Order. They
all come with that little like headline of where it is, what's happening, what time it is, and it's like constant. The
more and more that come in, the deeper and deeper Solomon's case file falls to some old cabinet or drawer filled with
other old files on other old cases. But in 2022, Detective Klein, who's with the
Bronx Homicide Squad, stumbles across Solomon's case while going through some of those old files. And it catches his
eye right away cuz Klene spent 7 years in the army. And he and Solomon were actually in boot camp at the same time,
although they never actually met. And he can't stand the thought of a fellow soldier's murder going unsolved. And as
he flips through the file, he sees potential. The witnesses who IDed the killers are still alive, as are the
potential killers themselves. And when he reaches out to a retired investigator who worked the case, that guy tells him
he thinks it's solvable, too. Klein thinks if he can track down Frank again and somehow convince Brenda to finally
cooperate, they might have enough to finally charge these guys, maybe whatever fear was keeping people silent
back then has faded away. Maybe now they can even develop some new witnesses who
were too scared to come forward before. And Detective Klein knows exactly where he wants to start. Not with Brenda, not
with Frank, but with Gail. All these years later, when Klein interviews her at her job in September of 2022, she
sticks to the part of her story that basically has her not with Solomon when he's being killed. But this time around,
she admits that they were romantically involved. Like, she told police the very first time. Right. We're back to that.
Yes. And unfortunately, she can't or won't explain any of the contradictory statements that she's made in the past.
Her story is she wasn't with him. She knows nothing. So sorry. The end. This is like beyond frustrating to me. I feel
like all the puzzle pieces are right there. Right here. And nobody wants to help put them
together. I know. It's got like it's going to take so much work. And and Klein keeps digging. He's willing to put
in the work. He sees a way to break through the wall of silence and he thinks the way to do that is with the
help of the feds. The NYPD and the FBI have this joint task force that targets violent crimes
and gang activity. Basically, they take cases that meet certain criteria like potential gang involvement and they look
to charge them federally. The task force had already successfully closed some other cold cases. So it wasn't difficult
to get them on board for Solomon's around 2023. And this opens up a whole lot of new doors because suddenly the
stakes are way higher for everyone involved. Lying to federal agents is a separate crime all on its own. And with
the weight of federal charges and mandatory minimums looming, not to mention a high conviction rate,
witnesses tend to get a lot more fearful. and as a result a lot more cooperative. They can also use evidence
that state prosecutors probably wouldn't touch like certain hearsay statements or
testimony from co-conspirators. So Klein is deputized as a federal agent which gives him the same authority and
right away he sees the difference when they go rein Frank. So they pull him into a car for questioning and once
Frank realizes that the FBI is involved his whole narrative changes. He confesses that he didn't actually see
Solomon get killed. What? Mhm. Why on earth would he make that up? So, he was hoping for a deal. You see, he says the
real truth, what he's telling them now, is that just Brenda saw it. He and Brenda had spent the earlier part of the
day together. He had sold her some weed, but by the time Solomon was killed, he being Frank had already left. Brenda
filled him in on what she saw that night. And when he got arrested on drug charges back in early 99, he needed a
story to use as like leverage, right? So, he passed the story off as his own. So, wait, did no one ask Brenda if he
was there like about Frank's like witnessing of it? This is the bonkers part. Not that I can tell. Remember,
they like told her because they wanted to get they left him out of the story completely and so did she, right? So she
like they were like completely leaving out how they got her name in the first place. So they just came at her like we
know you know which which ended up working but like I don't think anyone ever circled back and like brought up
Frank again or brought up that like Frank wasn't in her story. But it sure comes up now when they interview her
again. This time at FBI headquarters in Florida where she had moved at some point. She tells them she was with Frank
earlier that day, but she doesn't remember him being with her when Solomon was killed. And unlike Frank, she sticks
to her account of what happened that night. She even IDs William is the shooter from a photo array. Although
again, she calls him by John's nickname, so no help clearing that up for me. But
she's still not willing to cooperate further. So of the two key witnesses they had, one never actually saw
anything. Isn't a witness. the other won't budge when it comes to working with police. Has anyone attempted to
talk to John and William yet? No. And not because they don't want to. They they just want to be strategic about it.
Like they don't have enough probable cause to make an arrest yet. So, I don't think they want to like tip their hand.
But Detective Klene has this idea and it involves this other unsolved murder that
he's been working. It's the murder of a young woman named Shauna Brown. You see,
a couple of months after Solomon was killed, Shauna's body was found in the lobby of a project building just outside
of St. Mary's Park. There was duct tape wrapped around her neck and she was naked and like in the fetal position.
Although, according to the New York Daily News, there was no sign of sexual assault. What is odd is that Shauna was
from East Harlem and she had zero connection to the building that she was found in. police theorized that she was
killed somewhere else and then left there afterward. Now, long story short, there was this note in Solomon's file
that Klein had come across, basically suggesting that William had something to do with Shauna's murder. Now, Detective
Klein doesn't believe that he already has a strong suspect in mind for her case, but he sees this as an
opportunity. Like, if he can get William talking about Shauna's case, like as a potential witness, maybe he can steer
the conversation toward Solomon. Like it's a long shot, but like what else have they got at this point? Anything is
worth trying. So when he goes to talk to him, William is talkative at first. He even identifies a suspect for them in
Shauna's case. It's actually the same guy who is already the prime suspect for Klein. But then William goes further and
says that same person, by the way, is responsible for other murders, including that guy that was killed in the park
next to a bench, which seems like he's referring to Solomon. And Detective Klein can hardly believe it because
nobody, and I mean nobody, had ever connected that particular suspect to Solomon's murder before. So to Klein, it
seems like William is like deliberately trying to divert attention away from himself by throwing someone else's name
out there. While you're talking to me, let me tell you that this other person is also connected to this other case you
haven't even talked about yet. Yeah. And the thing like when I say no one like brought up him in the other case, no one
actually brought up Solomon at all. Like when he's talking to William, it's not like he he didn't even get to the part
yet where he was going to like try and we he wasn't even like in his plan. Completely unprompted. So, Detective
Klein tries to persuade William to come in and like give an official statement, but even though he agrees to, he never
actually does. And they like keep trying to reach him by phone to urge him to come in, but he ignores all of their
calls. And when investigators go knocking on his door, things get strange. William has this whole like
surveillance system set up and he texts Klein a picture of Klein standing outside of William's door. That's
creepy. I know. So, all in all, his cooperation was shortlived, but police will not give up. They have been doing
what they can to keep Solomon's story in the public eye. They've papered St. Mary's Park with posters about the case.
They've been pushing for more media coverage and recently behind the scenes they've begun to pursue new forensic
testing, taking advantage of technological advances that weren't there when Solomon was originally
killed. So all of these efforts are crucial because even though investigators are pretty confident that
they have the right people in their crosshairs, like you know, if the detectives theories are correct, like
both William and John could be charged with Solomon's murder, but there are still key details they need to piece
together before they can even try to move ahead with any charges. Would they both get charged with murder or just one
of them since it was technically like the bullet like the gunshot that killed him and the one who shot him like could
be charged with murder versus the one who stabbed him? No. Legally they share responsibility for what happened. So
even though the bullet is what technically killed Solomon, the law considers even the stabber just as
culpable since that person was there participating in the assault. If there's ever evidence that they
planned it beforehand, they could be also facing conspiracy charges. This all applies at the federal level, too. And
if gang activity was involved, racketeering charges might come into play. What it boils down to is that if
investigators can show that these two acted together, they could both be held accountable for Solomon's murder,
regardless of who did what. But of course, one of them could flip on the other. And I have to imagine if it gets
to that point, it'll be like a whoever talks first gets the better deal sort of thing. But Solomon's family has been
waiting for answers for more than 27 years. And the uncertainty has taken its toll. I mean, just a year after he was
killed, Solomon's parents packed up. They left New York for South Carolina, his mom Edna's home state. They couldn't
bear to stay in the area any longer. like every street corner, every familiar place was just a reminder of their loss.
Both of Solomon's parents have since passed away without ever seeing anyone held accountable for their son's death.
And one of Solomon's brothers, Steven, passed away, too. But his other brother, Russell, and his cousin Melody, are
still the ones out there fighting for justice today. And they miss Solomon, his fun-loving personality, and his kind
heart. They wish they could have seen what he would have made of himself because they are sure he would have gone
really far. Like he had such big dreams and he wanted to continue his education.
He wanted to buy a house for his folks. But instead, his loved ones are left with just 19 years worth of memories and
so many questions. Now, despite his dedication to Solomon's case, the detective who's been living and
breathing it for the past few years won't be the one to see it through to the end. Klene actually retired right as
we were finishing up our reporting on this story. The investigation has transferred to one of Klein's partners,
but he knows how important it is to Klein. So, I don't think that he's going to be putting it on the back burner
anytime soon. But saying that, like what I also want to say is like police need help to solve
this. Solomon Robinson served his country only to be betrayed by someone in his own community. And there are
people out there, probably a lot of people, who know something. And maybe you're one of them. Maybe you've been
holding on to a piece of this puzzle for all of these years, thinking it doesn't
matter or thinking that coming forward now won't make a difference. But it very well could. And the FBI is offering up
to a $25,000 reward for information leading to the identity, arrest, and conviction of whoever is responsible for
Solomon's murder. So, if you know anything about what happened in St. Mary's Park in the Bronx on the night of
Friday, April 3rd, 1998, please contact the NYPD Crimestoppers at 1800577 TIPS. You can also reach out to your
local FBI office or submit a tip online, completely anonymous. We'll have all of
this information on our website and in the show notes. You can find all the source material for this episode on our
website, crimejunkypodcast.com. You can also follow us on Instagram, crimejunkiepodcast. We'll be back next
week with a brand new episode. [Music]

Today, we delve into the unsolved and tragic murder of Solomon Robinson, a 19-year-old U.S. Army soldier tragically killed on April 3, 1998, in St. Mary’s Park, South Bronx, New York. While visiting family on military leave, Robinson was found with a gunshot wound to the chest and multiple stab wounds, including a distinctive facial slash, in a park crowded with partygoers. Despite the presence of numerous potential witnesses, no one has provided critical information to the NYPD, leaving the case unsolved for over two decades. We explore the details of that night, the challenges faced by investigators, theories of possible motives, and the renewed efforts by detectives to bring justice to Robinson’s family.

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About Ashley Flowers Ashley Flowers is the top female podcaster in the U.S. and the host of Crime Junkie, the #1 podcast among women and the #1 true crime podcast globally. As the Founder of audiochuck, she has built a top-tier podcast production company that has garnered over 2.6 billion downloads, captivating audiences with its gripping storytelling through 10+ chart topping podcasts. Ashley and her team are dedicated to creating responsible true crime content that respects victims and their families.

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Check out these other great crime channels: @StephanieHarlowe Coffee & Crime: Chris Watts- The Man Who Erased His Family and Still Plays the Victim https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ixZi86VC2JU&t=2s @annieelise His Parents Found a Severed Head in His Closet: The Chilling Case of Brian Cohee https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DE3UKNiK0XE @KendallRae Poison Expert Allegedly Spikes Wife's Smoothie?! The Case Of Betty Bowman https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kZuqkD3X38k @48hours The Country Club Murders | Full Episode https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NqTNmUeVo54

Brief Summary

The episode details the unsolved murder of soldier Solomon Robinson and the ongoing investigation for justice.

Key points

The Murder of Solomon Robinson. A young soldier is murdered in a chaotic scene, leaving many questions unanswered.
Chaos in the Park. A party turns deadly when gunshots ring out, leading to a frantic scene.
A Family's Heartbreak. Solomon's family learns of his tragic death, shattering their joy of his return.
Conflicting Stories. Witness accounts begin to contradict each other, complicating the investigation.
A Promising Lead. Months later, a jail inmate claims to have witnessed Solomon's murder.
Brenda's Statement. Brenda's account of the murder aligns with Frank's, but she refuses to cooperate further.

Episode highlights

Episode quotes

But if robbery was the motive, his killer left behind an expensive starter jacket.

The investigation's initial confusion.

2:14WatchApr 24, 2025

Tension

65/ 100Some tension

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