Wednesday, March 6, 2019

Guilty Verdicts For Murderer and Son Behind Killing of Uptown Hair Salon Owner Yolanda Holmes

Yolanda Holmes with son Qawmane Wilson
(2010) (from her Facebook page)
Six and a half years after the murder of Yolanda Holmes, age 45, the man who killed her - and her son, who paid him to do it - have both been found guilty of 1st degree murder.

On Labor Day weekend in 2012, Uptowners were shocked to learn of a murder in the then-new Wilson Yard apartments. The much-loved owner of a Buena Park hair salon had been stabbed and shot by an intruder while asleep in her bed.

She was remembered as a vivacious and generous woman who loved her family, particularly her 22-year-old son, Qawmane Wilson, who frequently was seen at the shop with her while he was growing up. She had been featured in news stories when the Wilson Yard apartments and Target opened, saying that she and her family "now have a safe and stable home."

It was shocking when arrests were made in her murder more than a year later. Her son, Qawmane, was accused of masterminding the scheme, staying off-site while paying his friend, Eugene Spencer, then 22, to go to the apartment to commit the actual murder. Loriana Johnson, then 23, was charged for her role as the lookout and getaway driver. 

The motive for the murder was allegedly to get access to Ms. Holmes' savings, and to cash out her two life insurance policies, so that Qawmane could further his career as an aspiring rap artist, "Young QC." 

His own behavior was what made police suspect him. He did a video that showed him throwing hundred dollar bills to his adoring fans, "giving back" to the neighborhood. He filmed himself buying designer clothes and adding upgrades to the Camaro his mother had bought him.

After an unbelievably long six years of pretrial proceedings, Qawmane Wilson and Eugene Spencer's cases both finally went to trial this month, with separate juries.

Yesterday, the jury assigned to Qawmane Wilson found him guilty, after only two hours of deliberation, of first-degree murder, home invasion, and attempted murder. 

Eugene Spencer's jury found him guilty of the same three counts this afternoon. Both men will return to the courtroom in April for sentencing hearings.

The getaway driver, Loriana Johnson, was found guilty in 2015 of Armed Robbery and was sentenced to 14 years. With time served, and using Illinois' day-served equals day-credit policy, she is due to be released in 2020. She has always claimed that she was told the crime she was an accomplice to was robbery, not murder.

As more information is released, we'll keep you informed.

25 comments:

  1. I thought he had gotten natural life, at least, that is what his Uncle Jimmy, said. He was always a rotten kid. I have known the family for years.

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    1. They didnt say how much time he received. Only the female driver

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    2. I just would like to know just what he was thinking. I've read handwritten court documents that he has just filed, handwriting is nice, punctuation he's not an idiot. Thinking of just writing to him in prison...

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    3. I am producing an Hour Special on this for ID feel free to have anyone involved in the case / story contact me

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    4. swatts@anomalyent.com 347-601-9626

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    5. Damn shameπŸ‘€πŸ‘€πŸ‘€πŸ‘€πŸ‘€πŸ™πŸ™πŸ™πŸ™πŸ™

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    6. This story grabbed me like nothing I ever heard. Here you have a literally stupid young man,who was'nt provided any direction or guidance,just the material best to make him believe he was down ,a major player,all the time knowing he was a zero and a fake. It's too bad his mother did not insist on his completing his education in some form or another..'m sure he was a special needs simpleton,but he had the capacity to learn a trade,I have grandsons his age whose and daughters who have taken out generous insurance policies on their behalf but one got his degree last year and his cousin is a b student,it's inconceivable to understand what or why he made this happen, I heard he was involved in a jailhouse escapade so he still does'nt have a clue his mothers family have no use for him,father was in prison,all I can do is shake my head

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    7. Manoop new Yolanda and she was a great person and she done her work every day and manoop gone miss her a whole lot. Rest at heaven Yolanda holmes

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    8. Hi Manoop. Reading so many wonderful things about her. I am producing a TV special on her story for the Oxygen channel. If you have any stories about her or the salon please feel free to send them to Benjamin.Kidder@texascrew.com. Would love to hear from you.

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  2. I was a client at the that salon for 4 or 5 years. She was nice enough from what I knew of her. Marcel (a barber and a hairstylist) cut my hair for more than 10 yrs, oddly enough, he was murdered a few years later. Both incidences were so sad. How could you do that to your own mom, SINCELESS!!!!

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    1. Hi Mark. Reading so many wonderful things about her. I am producing a TV special on her story for the Oxygen channel. If you have any stories/pictures of her or the salon please feel free to send them to Benjamin.Kidder@texascrew.com. Would love to hear from you.

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  3. Both males where sentence, Holmes got 99 and Spencer 100 years

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  4. Oh my God I remember the barber Marcel

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  5. Wow, I can’t believe what he did, how could you be so cruel. From what I see you were loved that wasn’t enough you are greedy I pray that you find salvation in your 99 yrs to me you should be placed in a cell with pictures of your mom plastered all over the walls so you could see what you have destroyed child of the devil you are I pray you repent and God has mercy on your soul.

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    1. Yes perfectly said. He chooses money and materialism over his own mom.
      πŸ₯Ί

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  6. God have mercy on his soul....God is the judge

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  7. 90k was all his mom was worth to him? Sick.

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  8. 6 years to come to trial. That's why witnesses don't want to come forward.

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  9. Having witnesses come forward was not the issue. Murder cases, particularly those that involve life imprisonment as a possible sentence, always take a longer time because they want to make sure everything is done by the book. It's a heavy responsibility to put someone in prison without possibility of them leaving. There was a witness, Ms. Holmes' boyfriend, who fought the killer in the apartment. He testified.

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  10. What a lazy self entitled sorry excuse for a kid.

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  11. I just watched the case on Suspicious Minds on ID. She was a beautiful woman and he is a handsome young man. Such a sad story. Money is the root of evil. This story is a testimony to that! Sergeant Michelle Woods was so right when she said to him during the interrogation "What's wrong with you?"

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  12. This is digusting to plot to have the woman that carried you and took care of him to be murdered like this shot and stab multiple just to earn some money but money is the root of all Evil it's sad she had to loose her precious life over it this story just boggles me TO CARRY OUT SUCH AN CRUEL HORRIFIC CRIME LIKE THIS ORDERED BY THE CLOSET PERSON TO HER ,HER OWN ONLY SON I HOPE PRISON IS MAKING HIS LIFE MISERABLE EVERYDAY HOW COULD YOU KILL YOUR OWN MOTHER WITHOUT ANY REMORSE THREW HER AWAY AND HER MONEY AWAY HER HARD EARNED MONEY LIKE IT WASN'T NOTHING MAY MRS.HOLMED REST IN PEACE PRAYERS GO OUT TO HER FAMILY OUT YOUTH NOW DAYS IS TERRIBLE AND WE SEE THE DESTRUCTION AS WE TURN OUT TVS ON EVERY NIGHT TEENS OUT HERE KILLING LIKE ITS A SPORT HURTING FAMILES πŸ™πŸ™πŸ™πŸ™

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  13. Truly a sad story. I am a producer for an Oxygen channel special on this case. We would like to focus on the positive community impact Yolanda Holmes had in the Uptown area in addition to the horrible tragedy that followed. If you have any information related to this story/case please reach out at the email below:
    Benjamin.Kidder@texascrew.com

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