The family of Roy Muhammad felt some closure with the end of the hit-and-run court case of the man who fatally injured the father and grandfather. Mr. Muhammad was distributing The Final Call newspaper as part of typical community outreach in Flint, Mich., Sept. 13, 2020, when a black Chrysler struck him and sped off.
A suspect, Ramon Sentell Bishop, was arrested, charged and recently sentenced. According to Fox News 25 TV in Flint, a “judge sentenced Bishop to no less than 80 months and no more than 270 months in prison. That amounts to at least six years, eight months, but up to 22 years, six months behind bars,” said the June 28 online article.
Prosecutors said Mr. Bishop did not stop after hitting Roy Muhammad and tried to conceal evidence that he was responsible. Roy Muhammad was 64. Mr. Bishop was charged with single counts of homicide-manslaughter with a motor vehicle, failure to stop at the scene of an accident when at fault resulting in death and tampering with evidence.
“I’m at a crossroads,” said Student Minister Jalil Muhammad of Muhammad Mosque No. 53 in Flint. “Brother Roy Muhammad, we affectionately called him the ‘dean of the FOI.’ ” He was known for his dedication in spreading the teachings of the Most Honorable Elijah Muhammad and for his consistent distribution of The Final Call newspaper. The FOI (Fruit of Islam) are the men of the Nation of Islam.
Upon receiving the news of Roy Muhammad being fatally injured, the Nation of Islam acted quickly to identify the perpetrator with the help of the Flint community.
“The brother that ran Brother Roy down was crying and appeared to have some remorse,” said Jalil Muhammad. But, he added, Roy Muhammad’s daughter she said no sentence given Mr. Bishop would bring her father back.
“She wasn’t happy with the seven years. … I explained to her how the citizen guidelines work, and that the only way that he would have gotten more than seven years was if the judge went outside the guidelines,” said Student Min. Jalil Muhammad.
Roy Muhammad’s son, Rasul Welch, told The Final Call he and his sister did not want a plea deal. “We didn’t like it at all, but they explained that it was an accident. … I don’t think it’s that bad for him, so I don’t really feel he got punished for his actions,” said Mr. Welch.
Khadijah Welch described her father as a “very fair guy.”
“Even if he [Mr. Bishop] would’ve showed any type of feelings that he did wrong, my father may have been okay. I feel like his remorse was towards the end. … I didn’t feel it was real,” said Ms. Welch. “It feels like it’s somewhat of a closure.”
The family thanked Student Min. Muhammad and the Nation of Islam for their continued support in the pursuit of justice. “Muhammad Mosque No. 53 would like to thank the Honorable Minister Louis Farrakhan for his guidance and his words of wisdom; we want to thank The Final Call newspaper for putting out what occurred to our brother. We want to say a heartfelt thank you. The Nation is one big family,” said Student Min. Jalil Muhammad
