Milwaukee fatal shooting near 31st and Burleigh, 40-year-old accused

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Anthony Washington

MILWAUKEE - A 40-year-old Milwaukee man is accused of fatally shooting a man near 31st and Burleigh on Sunday, May 18. The accused is Anthony Washington, and he faces the following criminal counts: 

• First-degree intentional homicide
• Possession of a firearm by a felon

Fatal shooting near 31st and Burleigh

What we know:

According to the criminal complaint, a citizen called police on Sunday morning, May 18, about a body that had been found near 31st and Burleigh. Officers arrived on the scene and found a man deceased. The Milwaukee County Medical Examiner's Office determined the victim died from multiple gunshot wounds.

At the scene where the body was found, investigators found "two spent 9mm cartridge casings as well as a deformed fired bullet projectile," the complaint says.

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The complaint says within a half-hour of the body being discovered, the victim's car was found parked within a few blocks. A detective "found apparent dried blood on the driver's seat and center console," the complaint says.

Cellphone data checked

What we know:

Investigators later tapped into cellphone data. They determined the defendant had a residence within the same area as where the shooting victim was last using his cellphone. When the victim's phone begins to move 12 hours after the homicide, it travels east on North Avenue, consistent with the route traveled by the North Avenue bus. The complaint says video "from the bus shows a man on the bus, who exits at 4th and North Ave. Based on the man's features as shown on the bus video, police developed the defendant, Anthony Washington, as a possible suspect."

Other cameras in the area of 4th and North "show that the suspect who exited the bus becomes involved in what appears to be a shoot-out with some young men in that area, during which the suspect runs across the street, running backwards at one point so he can face the young men who are pursuing him," the complaint says. A witness told police he found and recovered a cellphone from the ground in that same area. It was later determined to be the shooting victim's cellphone, which had been in the area of the body on the day of the homicide.

On May 29, police executed a search warrant on the defendant's residence. In the defendant's room, investigators "found (the shooting victim's) ID, a pair of purple and black shoes with gold eyelets with apparent dried blood droplets consistent with the shoes worn by the man who entered (the victim's car at 27th and Capitol, a pair of jeans with apparent dried blood stains," and more, the complaint says.

The police investigation revealed the defendant sometimes stays at a relative's house. When officers went to that house, they found the defendant in the yard filling a lawnmower's tank with gas. When he saw the police, "the defendant immediately bolted," the complaint says. He was taken into custody after a brief foot chase.

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A relative at that residence told police that some of the defendant's belongings were in the living room. "Police executed a search warrant and found a 9mm handgun in the living room on top of the TV," the complaint says. Technicians later test-fired the handgun and determined "the 9mm gun recovered from the living room is the gun that fired the casings found near (the victim's) body," the complaint says.

Detectives interviewed the defendant. At first, he denied knowing the victim. He later admitted knowing the victim, but denied killing him, the complaint says.

What's next:

Washington made his initial appearance in Milwaukee County court on Wednesday, June 4. Cash bond was set at $100,000.

Washington is due back in court for a preliminary hearing on Tuesday, June 10.