Pennsylvania — In Pennsylvania , a man has been sentenced for his role in murdering four men for cash in less than the span of a year from late 2018 to mid 2019. Steven M. Williams, 30, must spend more than 40 years in prison, according to authorities in a report from CBS News .
He pleaded guilty to three counts of murder and conspiracy to commit murder last December. According to the state’s attorney general’s office, he was involved in the deaths of four men in Philadelphia:
- William Crawford, 35, on Sept. 8, 2018 in the 1900 block of Hartel Avenue
- Jermaine Simmons, 39, on Feb. 10, 2019, in the 7500 block of Forest Avenue in West Oak Lane
- Richard Isaac, 31, on March 25, 2019, in the 100 block of East Meehan Street in Mount Airy
- Leslie Carroll, 39, on May 4, 2019, at 20th Street and Girard Avenue in Fairmount (Prior reports and online obituaries had his age as 46, but the DA’s office had it as 39.)
“This defendant callously took lives, for dollars, as a paid killer,” Attorney General Michelle Henry said in December. “The defendant is without a doubt a danger to society, and we will be asking the court for a sentence that ensures that the community is protected.”
Following Williams’ arrest in 2020, Philadelphia District Attorney Larry Krasner claimed the defendant received thousands of dollars to kill people.
“His streak of wanton, violent crimes against our communities over the past two-plus years ends today,” Krasner told reporters. “I’d like to thank the Philadelphia Police Department for their investigation and my office’s Homicide Unit for pursuing this case.
Despite the closure of most court functions, we will move as quickly as possible to bring him to justice and support those who have been grieving his victims for years.”
