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On July 22, 2018, three sisters, Nia, Letifah and Tashiya Wilson, were attacked by a man wielding a knife, later identified as John Cowell, after exiting a Bay Area Rapid Transit (BART) train at MacArthur station in Oakland, California. 18-year-old Nia Wilson died after her throat was slashed. Her older sister, Letifah, was stabbed in the neck but survived. Tashiya was not physically harmed. Cowell, aged 27, was identified as the suspect immediately following the attack, and he was caught the following day. Cowell had been paroled in May 2018 after serving time for second degree robbery, and had previous charges for assault and possession of methamphetamine. Initial perception of the attack as apparently racially-motivated spurred protests at MacArthur BART station and online. Cowell's parents stated their belief that the attack was possibly motivated by Cowell's mental illness. Authorities have yet to establish a motive for the attack and have also stated that there is no evidence that the attack was racially motivated. On July 17, 2020, Cowell was sentenced to life in prison without the possibility of parole. Background Victims Nia Wilson (November 12, 1999 – July 22, 2018) was a cheerleader and a rapper. She dreamed of having a dance studio. She and her cousins were in a music group called Girlz N The Hood. The album Fake Shit was released post-Wilson's death; the group planned to reshoot the video but they did not release it until after she passed. Fake Shit is now on iTunes. Wilson was known as being talented with makeup, and was known by the nickname PG (pretty girl).Nia was the daughter of Ansar El Muhammad and Alicia Grayson. She is the youngest of six sisters (including Malika Harris, Letifah Wilson, Nishiya Wilson and Tashiya Wilson) and two brothers. Her cousin, Tijanae Lafleur, 19, has also spoken about Wilson's character and stated they had previously had a conversation on what he should do in the event that someone ever hurt her. Lafleur told reporters that Wilson told him to not let anyone who hurt her get away with it. Wilson's other cousin, Byron Brown, stated Wilson would have wanted more than one protest. He remembers her stating, “justice is never served when black people were killed."At a 2016 vigil for her boyfriend and his best friend, who had drowned in a reservoir, a shot was fired into the crowd of 3000 hitting 16 year old Reggin’a Jefferies in the neck. Jefferies was standing right next to Wilson. Wilson stayed with Jefferies until medical help arrived. According to her father, she was set to graduate with honors from an Oakland continuation school, Dewey Academy.At the time of the attack, Letifah Wilson was aged 26. Suspect Twenty-seven year-old John Cowell has been described as a 5 feet, 8 inch tall white man. Cowell was raised in Concord, California where he lived on and off for years. Cowell's earliest brush with the law came at age 18 when he was arrested for allegedly beating up a man and the man's daughter.Four days before the stabbing, Cowell was confronted for not paying his BART fare. In 2016, Cowell had been found guilty of second degree robbery after he brandished a knife and a fake gun in a Lucky store at El Cerrito Plaza after a security guard confronted him over stealing; he was arrested at El Cerrito BART Station, and was sentenced to two years in federal prison. Cowell had been released on parole in May 2018. Also in 2016 Cowell was arrested for petty theft, illegal possession of tear gas, possession of an illegal smoking device and drug possession, but these charges were dismissed due to the robbery conviction. In 2016, Kaiser Permanente Richmond Medical Center filed a restraining order against Cowell for threatening to kill one of their employees. Also, in 2015 Cowell's family filed a restraining order against him after he allegedly tried to enter their home while under the influence of drugs. Later that same year, Cowell was arrested for possession of a controlled substance after he was found high on methamphetamine and was sentenced to 90 days in jail.In 2013, Cowell was convicted of battery in Walnut Creek. In 2009, Cowell was arrested and charged with felony assault, for beating 51-year-old Shane Glick, and punching Glick's daughter after they confronted him about a recent burglary. Also, in both Alameda and Contra Costa counties, Cowell's arrest record lists charges of assault with a deadly weapon, possession of a controlled substance, vandalism and petty theft.He was arrested on July 23, 2018. Cowell was homeless before the attack. Bay Area Rapid Transit In five days, three unrelated homicides, including Wilson's murder, occurred at Bay Area Rapid Transit (BART) stations. Hours after Wilson's funeral, another two people were stabbed at MacArthur BART station, causing the station to again be shut down. BART has stated they had been planning to make security improvements well before Nia Wilson's death. The plan involves massive security camera improvements. BART would need $15 million over four years to upgrade the current system to digital, $1.3 million per year to monitor the technology, and $4.9 million to install a Physical Security Information System (PSIM). The plan would cost $28 million total to implement. Murder Event On the night of July 22, 2018, Nia Wilson and two of her sisters (Letifah and Tashiya), were returning from a party at their aunt's in Concord, California. They had gotten on the train at Concord station and were transferring trains at MacArthur station, in order to go home. According to a BART spokesperson, the perpetrator also rode from Concord station.At approximately 9:30 pm at MacArthur station, the perpetrator slashed Nia's throat and stabbed her older sister Letifah in the neck. The attacker was silent and stood back watching as Nia died, while Letifah, who survived with a serious neck wound, held her. Tashiya was uninjured. The perpetrator then fled.Police identified John Cowell based on security cameras at the scene, a backpack with Cowell's identification inside, and witness statements of him wiping the knife clean and fleeing after the attack. Motive The motive for the attack has not yet been identified. The Wilson sisters told reporters they had never seen Cowell before the stabbing. Activists and news outlets speculated the attack could have been racially motivated. Mayor Libby Schaaf released the statement: “The fact that his victims were both young African-American women stirs deep pain and palpable fear in all of us who acknowledge the reality that our country still suffers from a tragic and deeply racist history,” while still confirming the city "has no room for hate and the city stands against racial hatred and white supremacy," but reinforced that officials have no evidence that the killing of Wilson was racially motivated. Bart Police Chief Rojas stated this was the "most vicious attack he had ever seen" during his 30-year police career.Cowell's parents released a public sta.... Discover the Nia Arthurs popular books. Find the top 100 most popular Nia Arthurs books.

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  • Subscribe To Love synopsis, comments

    Subscribe To Love

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    A little white lie to save her social media career is about to snowball out of control…When content creator Nelly receives an ultimatum from her parents to revive her flagging Our ...

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    If You Were Me

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    Two girlsone white and one blackswitch bodies. Can they find common ground? High school seniors, Natalia Brown and Elizabeth Castillo, live very different lives. Natalia’...

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    Taming Mr. Darcy

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    The only thing Alexi Reyes and her big sister Melody have in common is their love for chocolate and ice cream. Where Melody goes out of her way to be friendly, Lexi prefers the sol...

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    Benson

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    He's the stranger she spent one passionate night with. He's also her new boss.In Carrie Lockwood's world, men are dogs, trust is a fool's errand, and commitment is a trend that's g...

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    A Reason To Fall

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    He’s a successful author but the heroine of his love story wants nothing to do with him.  After clashing on national television, Tanner can’t get the beautiful Kylie Mitchel o...

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    Mash Up

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    Music is his life. Until he meets Izzy. When it comes to music, Jace Kelly lives by his own rules. He’s a talented, reggaejamming, nonweed smoking white boy. Reggae is imprint...

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    Taming Mr. Know-It-All

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    Susan Bevans is intimately acquainted with heartbreak and betrayal. For a change of scenery, she pursues a new direction in the beautiful country of Belize. For a change of heart, ...

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    Loosen Up To Love

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    A frazzled foster mother. Two adorable, troublemaker boys. And the grouchy doctor who's helplessly drawn to them. Ida Simpson has her life in perfect order and protects that order ...

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    Joon Gi

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    All is fair in love and revenge…Joon Gi Kim gets what he wantsin romance and in business.But when one bad decision costs him his fiancée, his fancy lifestyle, and his reputation, h...

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    Blast Out

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    A broken beast with a dark secret and the beautiful bass player who can heal him...Tall. Gorgeous. Silent. Will Young hates the spotlight despite being in the middle of it.To his l...

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    Count Down

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    Can an arrogant playboy drummer win a church girl's heart?  Hot, famous, and successful, Trey Johnson and his reggae band have risen to fame in a spectacular fashion. Pro...

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    Finn

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    A wounded beauty with a past meets a stranger with a dark vendetta.Hiding is all Jewel knows how to do.Until Finn Robinson, a charming stranger, drags her into the light.Handsome, ...

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    Taming Mr. Charming

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    Mia Johnson is a girl with a past, but she's never let her past define her and she isn't about to start now. She has her eyes set on the future, a future where the perfect black Pr...

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    Open Up To Love

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    Three weeks before her wedding, she meets the love of her life. But choosing true love could destroy everything. Abigail Palacio is living life waiting for the other shoe to drop.H...

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    Shape Up To Love

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    A fitness instructor determined to save her gym. A giant teddybearsized doctor desperate for a promotion. A partnership that blooms into love. Melissa Michelson handles her busines...

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    A Reason To Grow

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    Rule number 1 for the music school landlord? Don’t date the backroom tenant.Duke's a grumpy recluse struggling to care for his fragile sister, but when he meets Careena he's instan...

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    A Reason To Heal

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    He's a handsome restaurant owner who doesn’t care about her past… because she hasn’t told him everything.When church secretary Rochelle Johnson stumbles into an entanglement with h...

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    Sun GI

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    A cold millionaire who steals his brother's fiancée meets the love of his life… Sun Gi Kim lives for nothing and no one except his bottom line.Until he meets her.Joana Lee Gre...

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    Taming Mr. Jerkface

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    Melody Reyes is on her first public relations assignment overseas. She's living life the only way she knows how, with one foot in the Kingdom and the other in the world. One divine...