VIRGINIA BEACH, Va. — People who work at the Wawa on Holland Road in Virginia Beach are missing their coworker Marie Covington’s smile.
“She always helped me out anytime I needed a ride... anytime I need information she was always there,” said Covington’s coworker Kevin Rodriguez.
Investigators found Covington’s body in August. Now, Virginia Beach Police report an internal investigation revealed the department mishandled her missing person's case.
In August, Virginia Beach Police broke down their timeline of getting information to state police so they could issue an Ashanti Alert. They said Covington’s family reported her missing the night of August 18 and told police they last saw Covington the night before.
Police officers put Covington’s information into the national police database.
Then on August 20, police said Virginia State troopers arrested a man driving the car Covington was last seen in. They reported this to Virginia Beach Police. An Ashanti Alert went out around 10 p.m. and later that night, investigators found Covington’s body in Norfolk.
Police arrested Gary Morton in Covington’s death. He faces second-degree murder charges and gun charges.
A Virginia Beach police spokeswoman said their recent review of the case found two police officers had rule violations for "unsatisfactory performance" after Covington was reported missing and before investigators found her body. She also said evidence points to Covington’s murder happening before her family contacted the police.
Covington’s family wants answers. Her daughter Carla Covington told 13News Now her family is contacting an attorney.
“Seeing this update so close to the holidays confirming what I’ve already known about the case is heartbreaking,” Carla said. “My family and I will be contacting an attorney because it’s crazy to think that the people who are supposed to protect us failed to do their job multiple times. That man should’ve never been out of jail in the first place and because he was, four children have to grow up without a mother.”
“I was the lead sponsor of the Ashanti Alert legislation at the national level,” said U.S. Senator Mark Warner.
Warner is now urging Governor Glenn Youngkin to re-examine the criteria needed for an Ashanti Alert. He said Covington’s case underscores his concern.
“I think the Ashanti Alert is working, but if we can make it work better, that’s what the goal of the letter is,” Warner said.
Virginia Beach Police said the officers involved got retraining and Chief Paul Neudigate created a team to assess the department’s missing person procedures.