2 charged in 2020 killing of Greensboro man, Guilford County Sheriff’s Office says
GREENSBORO, N.C. (WGHP) — Two Greensboro men have been charged in connection to a homicide that took place in 2020, according to law enforcement.
According to warrants, Howard Hakeem Banks, 22, of Greensboro, is being charged with first-degree murder and robbery with a dangerous weapon in connection to the Oct. 8, 2020, death of 20-year-old Anthony Kristopher King.
The Guilford County Sheriff’s Office said that Amari Alan Jackson, 22, will be served warrants for the same charges “in the near future.” Jackson is already in prison for unrelated charges.
King was found dead on the morning of Oct. 8, 2020, from obvious traumatic injuries after Guilford County Sheriff’s Office deputies came to investigate a reported assault.
A warrant for Banks’ arrest was issued on Monday and he was taken into custody on Tuesday.
Banks made his first court appearance on Wednesday and is being held in the Guilford County Detention Center under a $1 million secured bond.
The investigation, which took nearly four years to yield arrests, was aided by 10 anonymous tips submitted through the Greensboro Guilford Crime Stoppers program. These tips were critical in identifying Banks and Jackson as suspects.
“This is something that makes it all worthwhile. To give that mother and family some peace,” said Marikay Abuzuaiter, a Greensboro Guilford Crime Stoppers board member and Greensboro City Councilwoman.
For Anthony’s family, the arrests offer a mix of relief and ongoing grief. His mother, Kristy King, expressed her heartbreak in a statement:
“My emotions are all over the place … My son was my best friend … They took that away from me. I wake up to the same nightmare every day. My son is gone forever. They took a beautiful person away with a good heart … There are no words really to describe the pain I’m in every minute of the day … I’m glad they finally made an arrest, and I have prayed for this every day because my son deserves justice,” she said.
Victim Services Coordinator for the Greensboro Police Department Mary Nero provided additional perspective on the arrest and the ongoing pain families endure.
“A lot of people think … there’s been an arrest in the case, so there is going to be this immediate sense of relief and closure. And that may be the case, but families and mothers will come back and say that there is no such thing as closure. You will never get closure out of this,” Nero said.
In her role, Nero works closely with mothers and victims’ families, organizing walks and community outreach events, including annual canvassing efforts on the anniversary of unsolved murders.
Each year, she helps lead these walks, distributing Crime Stoppers flyers in the neighborhoods where the crimes took place. The goal is to keep the cases in the public’s mind and offer comfort to families still seeking justice for their loved ones.
The arrests of Banks and Jackson have been seen as a significant win for investigators.
“For all those days where we have dark days and feel like we’re banging our heads against the wall, this is why we do this,” Nero said.
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