Rhode Island : Roy Weber
Photo: Find A Grave
We have shared stories from the capital city of Rhode Island before, and the story I am sharing with you today talks about sensitive topics. It involves sex work, drug addiction, potential hate crimes, and murder. This is your caution warning that you may want to skip today’s episode if any of those topics are triggering.
Providence, Rhode Island, has a fascinating historic charm and modern vitality blend. With a population of around 190,000, it is known for its prestigious institutions like Brown University and the Rhode Island School of Design. Founded in 1636 by Roger Williams, Providence has evolved into a cultural hub. Over 80 bonfires light up the rivers downtown in summer and fall evenings.
As with many large cities, Providence's crime rate is slightly above the state average. Neighborhood Scout lists Providence at a 12 on its crime index, meaning the chance of becoming a victim of violent crime is 1 in 295. We are navigating advocacy here in Providence to share Roy Weber's story.
Photo: Find A Grave
Little to no information about Roy’s early life was available. I know he was born in 1981 outside of San Diego before his family moved to Newport, Rhode Island. He had one sister and one brother. According to an article in the Providence Journal, he loved science, art, and reading. Roy had a rough upbringing; his father would eventually leave, and he began hanging out with a rough crowd. As a teen, he began experimenting with alcohol and marijuana and eventually progressed to ecstasy and cocaine.
He had been reported as a runaway twice within three months at just 14 years old. With the tension building inside the home with Roy’s rebellious behavior, he was placed into a state group home. Both of those times he ran away, law enforcement started to learn more about Roy. Former Providence Police Maj. Campbell, reported to the Providence Journal that while they began to know Roy’s name it wasn’t in a criminal fashion at first.
As Roy moved into his older teenage years, his addiction took hold, and he began working as a sex worker to pay for his drugs. He regularly hung around adult video stores downtown Providence to solicit male companions for money.
Roy became close friends with Rich Holcomb. The two bonded because they led similar lifestyles. Rich was from Providence and told the Dark Downeast podcast that he was being approached for sex work as early as ten years old. He turned them down as a child, but later, when his drug addiction forced him into the unhoused community, he found that sex work was an easy and quick way for him to fund his drug habit. Rich told WPRI
Rich hung around the same adult video stores and alleyways that Roy did. One evening, a bartender at a club filed a complaint against Roy for solicitation in exchange for drinks.
Roy had a few altercations in 2003, which led to warrants in Providence and Newport for several different charges. Roy was incarcerated for a few months at the Adult Correctional Institute in the minimum security unit for probation violation.
In the fall, Roy showed up to his mother’s apartment in Newport with a badly beaten and bloody face and shoeless. When she asked what happened to him, he said that he had been jumped, but it was later revealed that he was beaten after a drug deal had gone wrong. Roy also told family that he was afraid to return to Providence because he felt his life was in danger.
In early December, Roy told his mother and sister that he was living with a man and another “street kid” in Massachusetts. This raised a few red flags for his family, but Roy seemed happy, so they didn’t push too hard for more information.
Sometime after this, Roy returned to Providence, though the exact timeline of his return has never been revealed.
On December 25, 2003, a security guard at Johnson & Wales University’s Harborside campus was making rounds on Allens Avenue around 10 a.m. when he noticed a young white man leaning against the chain-link fence. The guard had not seen him when he had made his previous round about an hour before. He approached the man and noticed that there was blood pooling near the man’s head. The guard then noticed that this man appeared not to be breathing. He reached out and felt warm to the touch and called for paramedics.
The paramedics stated this man had no ID and wore black pants, a sweatshirt, and white high-top sneakers. He appeared to have gunshot wounds to the back of his head, his red hair matted with blood.
In the following hours, police learned that this young man was Roy Weber. His fingerprints matched the system from when he had previously served time.
By 5 pm on Christmas day, Roy’s sister and mother were visited at their apartment by officers informing them of Roy’s death.
Law enforcement learned quite a bit of information early on in this investigation. They searched the crime scene, and if they found any items of evidentiary value, it was not released to the public. The security camera footage was less than helpful. Rain and foggy weather hindered the views, and the cameras could not see where Roy’s body had been left. Investigators have stated that a murder weapon has not been recovered.
After learning Roy’s identity, they headed to the downtown Providence area where Roy frequented. They spoke with a few of his acquaintances to see if they had seen Roy that day. The information they did receive was fruitful in narrowing down the timeline of events leading up to Roy’s murder.
They learned that on Christmas Eve 2003, Roy was at the Cathedral Square Apartments near Greene Street. Witnesses stated they saw Roy at the apartments where he was participating in drug use and sex work. This apartment complex was a haven for criminal behavior at the time.
Security footage confirmed Roy’s presence in the hotel lobby at 6:35 am on Christmas Day. Law enforcement did not gain access to this footage until a month after Roy’s death, and I am honestly surprised they were able to recover any of it. Roy is standing in the lobby facing the camera, speaking to a young black man. At the same time, a middle-aged white man was in the lobby. He would be seen in the lobby again at 6:54 am. He is a clean-shaven white male with a prominent nose and rigid jawline. He had what appeared to be dark hair in a neat, short haircut.
Photo: Dark Down East
This is the last confirmed sighting of Roy alive. His body was found less than 4 hours later. Law enforcement released two images of this white male hoping it would entice someone to come forward with more information. I had to dig for them a little bit. Thankfully, the podcast Dark Down East had posted them, but I also found them on a no longer available website.
Roy’s murderer is still unaccounted for. His friend, Rich, became sober and founded Project Weber, named after his dear friend Roy in 2008.
Now, he advocates for male sex workers and provides them with tools, resources, and education for HIV prevention. This is one of the country’s first peer-led outreach programs dedicated to helping male sex workers, many drug-addicted, turn their lives around with peer-to-peer programming. Project Weber has since merged into Project Weber/RENEW. RENEW stands for Revitalizing and Engaging Neighborhoods by Empowering Women. Together, they offer drop-in center services on Broad Street in Providence and distribute educational materials, harm reduction supplies, outreach programs, address basic needs, HIV prevention testing, support groups, and case management.
He also produced a documentary titled “Invisible” shedding light on the male sex work industry. Rich felt that it does not get the same spotlight or public awareness that women or transgendered communities receive. He states that it is an invisible issue, and most people turn their heads to it.
If you have any information about who killed Roy Weber or recognize the man in the photos we will share on social media, please reach out to the Cold Case Unit at 401.468.2233.
Sources:
https://savagewatch.com/2021/01/07/mystery-man-never-identified-in-murder/comment-page-1/
https://savagewatch.com/2021/01/07/mystery-man-never-identified-in-murder/
https://riag.ri.gov/about-our-office/divisions-and-units/criminal-division/cold-case-unit
https://www.facebook.com/100064446833616/posts/10158453499943202/
