John Harding Pope, 57, was shot and killed inside his Mayflower Square apartment in the 5900 block of Quantrell Avenue in Alexandria, Virginia, on September 30, 2020. Police responded to a report of a possible shooting around 3:50 p.m. and found Pope with an upper body injury; he was taken to a hospital where he died. He lived in the apartment with his 77-year-old mother, and neighbors remembered him as a positive presence in the building.

The investigation quickly produced a suspect. On October 4, 2020, Alexandria Police arrested 19-year-old Tavon Marquis Lanier, of Alexandria, charging him initially with second-degree murder and use of a firearm in the commission of a felony. Neighbors had reported seeing a light-skinned young man with face tattoos near the building. Investigators later said Pope was shot during an attempted theft of his lawfully prescribed medications and that those medications were taken from the scene.

If anyone saw suspicious activity near Mayflower Square around September 30, 2020, or has information about the theft of prescription drugs from that apartment, please come forward.