NORFOLK, Va. (AP) — Four men from North Carolina have been sentenced to life in prison for their involvement in a murder-for-hire scheme that resulted in the death of a Norfolk woman in 2016. The men – Jaquate Simpson, Landis Jackson, Kalub Shipman, and Nelson Evans – were convicted in March 2023 for their roles in the murder of 59-year-old Lillian Bond. According to court documents, Bond was shot to death on April 19, 2016, while taking out the trash in Norfolk.
The murder was found to be connected to a drug trafficking operation led by Simpson and Jackson, responsible for distributing large quantities of cocaine in central North Carolina and the Hampton Roads region of Virginia. Prosecutors revealed that the motive for Bond’s murder stemmed from a drug deal gone wrong, where a Norfolk-based drug dealer failed to pay over $81,000 for a multi-kilogram cocaine delivery. In retaliation, Shipman was hired to kill the next person to exit a house associated with the dealer, leading to Bond becoming the victim of the murder-for-hire.
Shipman then recruited Evans to assist with the murder-for-hire, and the two men traveled to Virginia a few days later. On the morning of April 19, Shipman and Evans shot Bond as she was taking out the trash on Trice Terrace in the Ingleside neighborhood of Norfolk. Bond, who was known for her compassionate nature and dedication to her community, had worked at the Children’s Hospital for The King’s Daughters for about 20 years.
Simpson, Jackson, Shipman, and Evans were convicted on various charges including murder while engaged in drug trafficking, use of a firearm resulting in death, and conspiracy to commit murder for hire. The life sentence for their crimes was considered mandatory.
This marks the end of a long legal process that led to justice being served for the senseless murder of Lillian Bond, a woman described as a pillar in her community.