John Richards was accused of the January 1916 murder of Wayne County resident William Anderson Gurley. Before he could face the accusations in court, a white mob broke the county jail on the night of the 12th, abducted Richards, and murdered him. Unfortunately not much is known about Richards' history. Newspapers reported that he was rumored to be from Wilmington and his death certificate proposed his age to be around 25 at the time of his death.