A 38-year-old Philadelphia man could be charged with first-degree murder depending on an examination of a sneaker print left in the snow, reports Daily Local.
According to authorities, 38-year-old Richard Allen Collins was pegged as the prime suspect in the killing of Artie Bradley on March 20, 2015 after Collins was connected to the "honeycomb" footprint left behind at the scene. Now, the footprint has become the focal point of the case as the defense looks to prove that the print doesn't match the Nike LeBron 12 sneakers belonging to Collins.
An alleged co-conspirator, Mariah Anne Walton, tells police that Collins was in fact wearing the LeBron 12s during the night of the murder. As far as police are concerned, the LeBron 12 is an exact match with the "honeycomb" print discovered at the scene, but it's not quite as cut and dry as it sounds on paper. Collins' defense team has been researching sneaker traction patterns and the outsole of the LeBron 12 (pictured below) in attempt to prove that the footprint doesn't match the sneakers in question, but the results of its investigation have yet to be revealed.
Police believe Collins killed Bradley over an outstanding drug debt. Both Collins and Walton face first-degree murder charges which carries a mandatory sentence of the death penalty or life with no parole in Pennsylvania. The trial begins on February 29.
Related Stories
Your Sneakers or Your Life: 25 Years Later, Has Sneaker Crime Changed?
25 years after the infamous Sports Illustrated cover, is killing over sneakers still an epidemic? Was it ever?
