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Michael Robertson was found guilty of all charges for the murder of 22-year-old Akia Shawnta Eggleston and her unborn child in 2017 and now faces two life sentences when he is scheduled to be sentenced in October.
Robertson was the father of the soon-to-be born child.
"Eggleston's pregnancy was difficult, and she was seeing medical providers at a Baltimore-area hospital on a regular basis to monitor the pregnancy," according to court documents.
"Given the approximate eight-month gestational period at the time of Eggleston's disappearance, there was a reasonable likelihood of the fetus' viability, that is, its sustained survival outside of the womb."
Prosecutors said that on May 7, 2017, Eggleston was reported missing after she missed her own baby shower. Friends and family sought for hours to track her down, though she was never located.
Robertson misled Eggleston into believing they were moving in together to start a life together, they continued, though instead he concocted an intricate ruse involving a phony home that led to the pregnant woman to withdraw cash for a down payment of the residence.
During the subsequent death investigation, officials say that Robertson purposefully lied and withheld relevant information about his relationship with her and details surrounding her disappearance.
Eggleston's body was never located.
Prosecutors said that the pair met when his grandmother babysat her as a young girl in the 1990s. They later reconnected in 2016 at the birthday party of a mutual friend and began dating, despite his relationships with two other women.
“Securing a conviction of this magnitude where there has never been a body found in a purely circumstantial case is a testament to ASA Bjorklund and the professionals in my homicide division," State's Attorney Ivan Bates said in a statement.
"Today's verdict sends a clear and resounding message to residents that the Office of the State's Attorney takes any homicide in Baltimore gravely serious and will be relentless in the pursuit of justice.”
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