NORFOLK, Va. (WAVY) — The man accused of killing a beloved mom and WaWa employee was found guilty of several charges in a separate case.
A jury found Gary Morton guilty of four charges: strangulation, abduction, assault and destruction of property for a 2020 Norfolk incident.
While he was out on bail, he allegedly abducted and killed 40-year-old Marie Covington in Virginia Beach last summer.
On Sept. 26, 2020, a member of the United States military testified in court that Gary Morton attacked her for looking at her phone. The two were romantically involved for about a year prior to the attack.
The woman, who 10 On Your Side will not identify for confidentiality purposes, tells a jury that Morton snatched her phone from her hand and threw it across her studio apartment. The phone, worth about $999, shattered.
He then grabbed her “by the throat” for about three to five seconds.
The woman who is 5’2″ was able to break free and went to get her personal gun. Morton then motioned to his gun. The woman then told Morton to leave, his response was “make me leave.” She was able to get around Morton when he grabbed her again from behind and said “I could kill you right now.” She said she tried to leave two to three times
She was finally able to escape her apartment and drive to a friend’s house to call the police.
A Norfolk Police officer explained to the jury that the apartment was “a scene of disturbed chaos.” The officer with nine years of law enforcement experience testified that the marks on her neck looked like she was strangled. Photos the officer took at the scene and of the bruises were shown to the jury.
Six months after the assault, Morton was arrested during the early morning hours on March 16, 2021. The interview video was shown to the court. During the interrogation, Morton repeatedly denies assaulting and strangling the woman in September. Morton tells detectives “it’s impossible” because the last time he saw the woman was after an argument around July 4, 2020. He admits to cracking her phone but insists the woman will not come to court to pursue the case adding “he is speaking from experience.”
However, in court on Monday, Morton took the stand admitting he got the days mixed up when he was being interviewed by Norfolk police detectives.
Morton tells the jury he went to the woman’s house in September 2020 after work. Morton explains the two had a “sexual encounter but it wasn’t the same.” Morton said he threw her phone down and the woman punched him in the chest. He said he tried to hold her back with his arm pressed against her neck. When the pictures of her injuries were displayed, Morton called it a mosquito bite and possibly a scratch from his shirt.
After about an hour and a half of deliberation, the jury found Morton guilty of all charges. Morton will be sentenced for this case on Dec. 15.
He will remain behind bars awaiting the murder trial scheduled for later this year in October.