HOPEWELL – A man arrested Wednesday in connection with the invasion and armed robbery of a landmark Hopewell restaurant last March is the same person that Colonial Heights Police believe shot a woman to death at a riverside park six weeks later.
Raymont Tasco, 57, of Hopewell, was formally charged with robbery and use of a firearm in the commission of a felony, according to a statement from Hopewell Police late Thursday afternoon. He was arrested at Riverside Regional Jail in Prince George County where he already was being held for the April 18 shooting at Roslyn Landing Park in Colonial Heights.
The robbery took place at K&L Barbecue, a popular three-decades-old restaurant in the Cavalier Square shopping center in Hopewell.
Tasco is charged with first-degree murder in the death of Cynthia Chante “Cint” Solomon in the predawn hours of April 18. Solomon, 36, also of Hopewell, was found dead in the bank waters of the Appomattox River by a fisherman who told police he heard a gunshot followed by a splash. When he went to investigate, he saw Solomon’s body in the water and what appeared to be car headlights backing away from the scene.
Tasco was arrested the following month at Hartsfield-Jackson International Airport in Atlanta. At the time, Colonial Heights credited Hopewell Police with assistance in his apprehension.
Police in Hopewell and Colonial Heights have yet to say if they believe the robbery and murder are connected.
Moments of terror at restaurant
This cake case was shot into during a robbery Friday, March 1, 2024, at K&L Barbecue in Hopewell. Four masked intruders held employees at gunpoint and got away with an estimated $45,000 from the safe. ‘They got everything,’ the owners’ granddaughter said.
The March 1 incident at K&L Barbecue rocked the Hopewell community.
According to reports, three men and one woman, all with their faces covered, barged into the restaurant around 7:30 a.m. as the employees were opening it for the day. They forced two employees into a walk-in cooler and assaulted one of the owners as they arrived with their young grandson.
Melissa Faulkner, who also is a grandchild of the owners, told The Progress-Index she was one of the employees forced into the cooler. She said one of the robbers pushed her grandfather to the floor and fired a shot that narrowly missed him.
The carpet inside the front dining room of K&L Barbecue shows damage from a bullet fired during a robbery Friday, March 1, 2024, at the longtime Hopewell restaurant. Witnesses said that bullet just missed the head of the co-owner, who had been beaten and was lying there.
Police believe one of the robbers was familiar with K&L’s operations because they kept asking for the code to the safe on premises. They reportedly fled the restaurant with thousands of dollars.
Authorities are still searching for remaining suspects in the robbery.
Bill Atkinson (he/him/his) is an award-winning journalist who covers breaking news, government and politics. Reach him at batkinson@progress-index.com or on X (formerly known as Twitter) at @BAtkinson_PI.
This article originally appeared on The Progress-Index: Suspected Hopewell robber is also possible Colonial Heights killer