Defendant Given Two Life Sentences for Murdering His Pregnant Girlfriend

By Amna Syed [former] - October 26, 2023
Court | Daily Stories | Homicides | Shooting | Suspects | Victims |

On Oct. 25, after listening to statements from the victims’ family, Baltimore City Circuit Court Judge Christopher L. Panos gave 42-year-old Michael Andre Robertson two consecutive life sentences for the first-degree murders of his girlfriend, 22-year-old Akia Eggleston, and her unborn son, Anubis.

Robertson was charged with two counts of first-degree murder and two counts of second-degree murder in connection to the killings on May 3, 2017, although the bodies were never found. A jury convicted him on two counts of first-degree murder on July 27.

Prosecutors theorized that Robertson was under pressure because he was involved with another woman at the time and unable to resolve the conflict. After Eggleston’s disappearance, investigators say Robertson made a number of inconsistent and dishonest statements about his actions, which made him a prime suspect.

Four years later, Robertson and his other partner moved to Michigan.

“You have caused my family six long years of heartbreak,” the victim’s stepmother said. “Akia and Anubis are with the keepers of our soul.” 

“I hope you live a long life, so you can suffer like I did,” the victim’s sister added.

Akia’s father told the defendant he “should now be known as a murderer.”

The victim’s grandmother tearfully said Akia was struggling in her relationship with the defendant. Her grandmother told Eggleston that she could live with her until she had the baby, but Eggleston said she wanted to be independent.

Her grandmother said Eggleston was very excited for the baby shower.

According to investigators and her family members, Akia was last seen four days before the event that may have triggered Robertson to commit the crime.

“First, I wasn’t going to give you the satisfaction of seeing my tears and my presence,” Eggleston’s aunt said during her impact statement. “You stole her money after you killed her. …She fed you [and] she fed your kids.”

Eggleston was living with a roommate on the 600 block of Cherrycrest Road, though Eggleston and Robertson had plans to move in together. 

“We had our own search, we had no help… I scheduled meetings in my house as if I was the FBI,” said the victim’s aunt. “We dug through trash. I thought [Robertson] would be decent enough to tell us where he put the body so [Eggleston’s] daughter could go to her gravesite.”

Robertson’s counsel, Jason Rodriguez, said Robertson did not receive a fair trial and he wanted to appeal the case.

“What happened to Akia and Anubis was the most horrific act,” Judge Panos said before imposing sentence. “There is no gravesite or a grave marker… There is none of that.” 

Judge Panos delivered the maximum penalty Maryland allows: life in prison with no possibility of parole for Eggleston’s murder and a second consecutive life sentence for killing Eggleston’s unborn child.

Baltimore City State’s Attorney Ivan J. Bates later released a supporting statement saying, “This sentence ensures that Michael Robertson will no longer be a threat to the safety of others and will spend the rest of his life behind bars for the egregious violence he inflicted upon Akia Eggleston and her unborn child.”