Fairfax County police confirmed the identities of two women slain in an alleged serial killer case Friday evening, and are probing whether a woman found dead in Washington, D.C., may be the fifth victim of the so-called "shopping cart killer."
Police announced Friday that DNA evidence identified the remains of Cheyenne Brown, a 29-year-old woman who disappeared from Southeast D.C. on Sept. 30, and 48-year-old Stephanie Harrison, who were found in a container in a wooded area near the Moon Inn Hotel on Route 1, just south of the Capital Beltway.
Fairfax County police believe suspect Anthony Eugene Robinson, 35, is a serial killer. Robinson was taken into custody in Rockingham County in November and was initially charged in the deaths of two women.
Police work and the discovery of two more bodies near a small motel in the Alexandria section of Fairfax County in December revealed what officials believe is the rare case of a serial killer.
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According to an investigation by police in Fairfax County, D.C. and Harrisonburg, Robinson met women online, went to motels with them, killed them and then transported their remains in shopping carts.
Fairfax County police are calling him the "shopping cart killer." He is accused of killing four women and authorities are investigating a fifth death.
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“We received a tip, a critical tip, that our person of interest may be linked to another case where a woman was found deceased, in a shopping cart in Washington, D.C.,” said Ed O’Carroll of Fairfax County police.
That woman is 40-year-old Sonya Champ, D.C. police confirmed. She was found in a shopping cart covered only by a blanket, on Sept. 7 in the 200 block of F Street NE, near Union Station, authorities said.
Although D.C. police are still investigating Champ's death, her mother Norma Hairson said, “I’m thankful to have closure. Now I know what really happened to my daughter."
A relative described Champ as an outgoing woman who loved her family.
O’Carroll said digital evidence ties Robinson to Champ's disappearance.
The investigation began when the bodies of Allene Elizabeth Redmon and Tonita Lorice Smith were found in an open lot in Harrisonburg on Nov. 23, the city’s police chief said. Redmon was 54 and lived in that city. Smith was 39 and lived in Charlottesville.
Brown was the mother of a 7-year-old boy and was pregnant, her family said in an interview with News4 in December, desperate for answers about her disappearance.
Brown's mother wanted everyone to know that "Cheyenne had a huge heart, and she was trusting and thought of everyone as her friend," Fairfax County Chief of Police Kevin Davis said.
A family member of Brown said he believes he saw Robinson in her home days before her disappearance. Robinson is the last person seen with Brown, police said. The two communicated over the Plenty of Fish dating app, police said.
"None of these families, my family, none of these families deserve to go through this," Brown's mother, Nicandra Brown, said. "Not only, you know, is my daughter gone, he took the life of my unborn grandchild."
Harrison's sister, Joei Harrison, says Stephanie flew from California to D.C. to go sightseeing. She checked into the Moon Inn in Fairfax County in August and then disappeared.
Joei said Robinson and Stephanie were staying in separate rooms at the hotel. She said they did not know each other.
“When I think about my sister, I think about the life she lived,” Joei Harrison said. “She was beautiful, vibrant.”
Robinson is known to have lived in D.C., Prince George’s County, Maryland, and New York, Fairfax County police said.
Fairfax County police believe he is possibly connected to a fifth homicide.
Fairfax County police have met with 35 other law enforcement agencies to review missing person cases and see if there are any potential links, police said.
Robinson is incarcerated in the Rockingham County Adult Detention Center, police said.
Fairfax County police are seeking anyone with information about the case or Robinson. He was known to have stayed at the Moon Inn multiple times and used dating apps included Plenty of Fish and Tagged.
"What we really need is information about previous contacts," O'Carroll said. Anyone who may have had contact with Robinson is asked to contact Fairfax County police. Rewards of $100 to $1,000 are available.
Timeline of the Shopping Cart Killer Investigation
The bodies of Redmon and Smith were found a short distance from each other in a lot in a commercial district of Harrisonburg on Nov. 23, police said. Police believe the women were killed at different times. A shopping cart was found nearby.
Robinson was arrested after cellphone records and video evidence linked him to the women.
Days later, on Nov. 30, D.C. police contacted Harrisonburg police and told them about Brown, who had disappeared. Cellphone data and surveillance footage would later show that Brown and Robinson were together on the night the woman was last seen, police said.
A coordinated effort between the Harrisonburg and D.C. police departments began.
A week later, on Dec. 7, D.C. police called Fairfax County police and asked for help finding Brown, Fairfax County police said. Digital data showed Brown and Robinson had been on Route 1 together, “possibly at the Moon Inn” on the night of her disappearance.
Detectives and a cadaver dog searched the area but were unsuccessful. Members of the police department went to Harrisonburg to meet with police and gather information.
On Dec. 15, police received new information and returned to Route 1 to expand their search. Homicide detectives saw a shopping cart and a container in the wooded area not far from the Moon Inn.
Officials identified two sets of human remains.
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