For more than three years, Egypt Covington’s family anxiously waited for authorities to track down those responsible for killing the 27-year-old musician in her home, before binding her body with Christmas lights.
On Thursday, that day finally arrived with the arrest of two suspects in connection with the June 2017 slaying. While the Michigan State Police declined to provide details about the people arrested, or what they were arrested for, a spokesperson said the arrests occurred Thursday morning and that the high-profile investigation is “ongoing.”
“There will be more information coming at the appropriate time by the Michigan State Police,” Chuck Covington, her father, said in a Facebook post Thursday afternoon. “I'm just happy to know that much for right now. Thanks to all involved in this tremendous beginning!”
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Another friend of Covington, who was a singer and beer distributor account manager, told The Daily Beast the arrest news “finally feels like the first step toward justice.” After years of unanswered questions—and at least one false alarm of an “almost arrest” in 2018—the friend said Thursday’s announcement “is a breath of fresh air.”
“This year has been pretty shitty and to hear that at least Egypt may soon get the justice she deserves is finally something exciting I can hang onto,” the friend, who wished to remain anonymous for fear of retaliation, said.
Covington was last seen alive at a yoga class on June 22, 2017, talking with a friend before she went home. After she did not respond to calls the next day, her boyfriend went to her Van Buren Township home—where he was met with a grisly scene. Authorities say Covington was found fatally shot in the head, just behind the ear, and her wrists tied by Christmas lights.
The harrowing crime captured state-wide attention. But, despite saying they had narrowed their scope and discovered the homicide was not a random act of violence, Van Buren Township police scrambled to find any leads.
“We do not believe this is a random crime,” Van Buren Police Detective Lt. Charles Bazzy said in July 2017. “We are working diligently to solve the crime.”
While police originally focused on Covington’s ex-boyfriend, who they said had a complicated relationship with Covington, her brother D’Wayne Turner told the Detroit Free-Press on Thursday that the boyfriend was not one of the two people arrested on Thursday.
Police in March 2018 announced a “person of interest” in the case, stating the individual was somebody Covington considered an acquaintance. But five months later, after no arrests were made in the case, Covington's family and Crime Stoppers of Michigan announced a $25,000 reward for information leading to an arrest. That reward was later increased to $30,000.
“I’m afraid that if we don’t keep her in the media, people will forget,” Tina Covington, her mother, said in March 2018. “I don’t want this to be a cold case.”
The case, however, did go cold, and in August 2020 Covington’s family held a rally demanding the Michigan State Police get involved in the case to assist local authorities that they believed could have done more. Covington’s mother also said at the time that police had not been open with her—and even told her she was “messing up this investigation.”
The Michigan State Police agreed to join the investigation. A Facebook group, "To Find Justice for Egypt," was also established to solicit tips in addition to the Crime Stoppers tip line.
Despite their ongoing battle with police, the Covington family and local community praised the state police on Thursday.
“We're definitely going to have a celebration,” Turner told the Detroit Free-Press shortly after hearing the news. “We're pretty limited on information. But the state detectives gave us a call that two people were arrested.”
And one local brewery, Brewligans Public House in Tenton, wrote on Facebook that it would celebrate the news with discounted pints of “A Girl Name Egypt,” a special beer named in Covington’s honor.
The Van Buren Police declined The Daily Beast’s request for additional comment but did confirm Thursday’s arrest.
