(Caleb M. Soptelean photo)
Tony Flaugher is looking for justice for his son.
Samuel Allen Flaugher, 19, was shot near 4003 Meridian Ave. in South Richmond around 9 p.m. Monday, April 15, and died several days later.
The case is still under investigation by Richmond Police, but Tony Flaugher, 48, spoke to various media outlets on Friday, May 10, in an effort to get someone to come forward with information about the incident.
Samuel Flaugher (pronounced floor) was shot once in the chest, with the bullet passing millimeters from his heart and severing an artery, his father said. Samuel then ran off into the woods and collapsed. A male friend he was with at the time dragged him to a nearby porch, Tony said.
Samuel was driving a silver 2007 Hyundai Veracruz and was robbed of cash, according to his father, who declined to state how much.
“I survived Desert Storm,” said Tony, who served four years in the U.S. Army. “My son couldn’t survive Richmond.” The address where Samuel was shot is located east of Jefferson Davis Highway about a mile north of the Chesterfield County line.
Upon hearing the news that his son was shot, Tony drove from his residence in Loganville, Ga., east of Atlanta, to be with his son at VCU Medical Center.
The day after Samuel was shot, Tony visited his son. “He barely opened up his eyes, a tear came out, and he squeezed my hand and went back under sedation,” Tony said. Around that time, Tony said he saw two angels in the hospital room. He said he didn’t know then that they were there to take Samuel because he was doing well that day.
His son – who was in the second semester of his first year at John Tyler Community College – never woke up again. “He was brain dead on the second day,” Tony said.
“Please help us bring [his]killers to justice before you are next,” Tony said.
Those with information about the incident are asked to call Det. James Baynes at (804) 646-3617 or call anonymously at Crime Stoppers, (804) 780-1000, use the P3 app or go online at 7801000.com.
A funeral for Samuel was held April 26 in Bluefield, W.Va. An end-of-life ceremony will be held in the Chester area soon, Tony said, noting that his son was a member of Christian Life Church, 12501 Life Trail.
