Boyfriend indicted in abduction, killing of 40-year-old Birmingham mother of 4

The boyfriend of a woman who kidnapped, shot eight times, and found in inside the trunk of her own SUV has been indicted in her slaying.

A Jefferson County grand jury issued the capital murder indictment against 37-year-old Cedric Dewayne Robertson on June 14, according to newly released court records.

Nakita Davidson, a 40-year-old mother of four, was abducted and killed Thursday, April 11, 2024. Her body was found the following day.

Robertson remains held without bond in the Jefferson County Jail.

At a preliminary hearing held in May, Birmingham police homicide Det. Justin Lane testified there was video of parts of the alleged crime, but not the actual shooting, and said there were two eyewitnesses to the killing.

The city’s Shot Spotter gunfire detection system registered 13 shots fired at the scene that morning – the first round of five shots at 1:37 a.m., and a second round of eight shots at 1:38 a.m.

The investigation began when officers were dispatched to a report of a wreck in the 300 block of Sixth Avenue S.W., which is near Elmwood Cemetery.

When officers arrived, they found a silver Chevrolet Equinox in or near the parking lot of a floral shop.

Lane said they found multiple shell casings, a pink Nike sneaker, which was later determined to belong to Davidson, and a pool of blood on the ground.

Two men, he said, witnessed the incident and were still on the scene when police arrived.

One of those witnesses told Lane he had just left the gas station and was walking home when he heard a crash.

He looked back and saw a silver SUV and a burgundy SUV. He then heard a woman saying, “You already hit my vehicle. I’m going to call police,” Lane said.

At that time, the detective said, the witness heard gunshots, so he ran to the other side of the road and got behind a tree and continued to watch.

The witness then heard more gunfire. “He didn’t hear the female speak anymore,’’ Lane said.

He saw the male, later identified as Robertson, pick up Davidson, put her in the back of a red SUV and drive off.

Lane said surveillance video from the nearby Chevron showed the moments leading up to the incident.

The footage showed Robertson’s silver SUV turn in the middle of the roadway and get behind the burgundy SUV.

Davidson, he said, was trying to get away from Robertson and turned into a parking lot by the floral store.

The silver SUV that remained on the scene was registered to Roberton’s mother, Lane said.

Inside they found Robertson’s wallet containing an identification card, and Medicaid and Medicare cards bearing Robertson’s name.

Robertson’s cell phone was also found at the scene.

Police launched an intensive search for both Davidson and Robertson.

Davidson’s vehicle, a burgundy 2008 Saturn Outlook, was found the following afternoon in a wooded area in the 2300 block of 18th Place S.W.

Lane testified that Davidson’s SUV was found across the street from the home of Robertson’s uncle and cousin.

The uncle told investigators that Robertson came to their home right before midnight and asked him for a ride. He said he drove his nephew, but he couldn’t recall where.

The detective said Davidson’s body was recovered from the trunk of the SUV. She had been shot multiple times on the left side of her body and there were also bullet holes in her vehicle.

Davidson’s niece, Lane said, told investigators that Davidson and Robertson had been arguing.

She said Robertson had shown up intoxicated and wanted Davidson to leave with him, but Davidson refused. It was not clear when that incident happened.

She said she spoke with Davidson on the night of the shooting and they were still arguing at that point.

Robertson, a convicted felon, was taken into custody about 6 p.m. Friday, April 12, by the U.S. Marshals Gulf Coast Regional Fugitive Task Force, the Birmingham Police Department’s Crime Reduction Team, and Jefferson County sheriff’s deputies.

His arrest ended the manhunt that began roughly 36 hours earlier.

In the earlier hearing, one of Robertson’s attorneys said his client is intellectually disabled and receives a disability check as a result.

Family said Davidson and Robertson had been dating for less than a year and that she was trying to get away from him.

Davidson left behind four young children – three daughters and a son.

A trial date has not yet been set.