5 charged in 2006 cold case kidnapping, murder of Philadelphia man

PHILADELPHIA - Five men have been charged in a nearly two-decades-old cold case kidnapping and murder of a Philadelphia man, federal investigators announced Thursday. 

Kevin Holloway, 45, Mark Scott, 48, Linton Mathis, 50, Atiba Wicker, 47, and Kenneth Tuck, 51, are accused of the August 2006 murder of 38-year-old Shamari Taylor.

Investigators allege that nine people conspired to rob Taylor of cocaine and drug money and some posed as Philadelphia police officers during the abduction.

It's believed that Taylor and his girlfriend were brought to a warehouse in North Philadelphia where Taylor was interrogated and tortured for information about additional drugs and money.

MORE LOCAL HEADLINES

• Deptford High School to dedicate baseball field to fallen Officer Bobby Shisler
• Dog shot, killed by Philadelphia officer after man mauled by 4 dogs: police
• Pennsylvania nurse who gave patients lethal or possibly lethal insulin doses gets life in prison

Investigators say Taylor was suffocated to death and his body was dumped in Fairmount Park before being buried by four of the kidnappers in a vacant lot in North Philadelphia. That vacant lot, according to investigators, has since become the parking lot for a Philadelphia charter high school.

A day after the abduction, investigators say Taylor's mother and sister were both shot in the head when Taylor's family in West Philadelphia was ransacked. Both women survived, according to investigators. 

Kenneth Tuck was arrested and charged in 2006 with Taylor's kidnapping, but was acquitted in 2008 following two different trials. During that time, no one else was charged in connection with the kidnapping or death of Taylor.

Shamari Taylor, 27, was kidnapped and murdered in Aug. 2006. He remained missing until 2018 when his body was found in a vacant lot in North Philadelphia.

Investigators now believe that Tuck was recruited to help kidnap and rob Taylor while posing as a police officer. Kevin Holloway, Mark Scott, and Linton Mathis are accused of partaking in the kidnapping and murder of Taylor. 

It's believed that Taylor's friend, Atiba Wicker, and another acquaintance helped lure Taylor to the abduction site. Investigators also allege that Tuck's family member bribed a witness who testified at his trial in 2007 to support Tuck's false alibi for the evening of Taylor's abduction.

If convicted, prosecutors say the five men face a maximum possible sentence of life in prison.