2 Arrested In Connection With Federal Hill Fatal Shooting
BALTIMORE, Md. (WJZ) — Baltimore Police arrested two people in connection with the Federal Hill fatal shooting last week.
Deandre Devon Sleet, 23, of Baltimore was charged in the murder of Timothy Moriconi.
Moriconi was shot point blank in his head just a short distance way from his home. The 25-year-old's family said he was walking home from a relatives home and that he was the victim of a robbery in the same neighborhood just a year ago.
Following Federal Hill Shooting, Neighbors Demand More Police Presence
Police arrested and charged Sleet just a week after Moricori's murder.
Sleet was charged with first- and second-degree murder, robbery, handgun use in commission of a violent felony, handgun on a person, discharging a firearm, felon in possession of a firearm, illegal possession of a firearm and handgun in vehicle.
Kiara Treasure Wesley, 23, was also charged in connection with the case. Wesley was charged with having a handgun in her vehicle.
It was crucial information and help from the neighborhood that led detectives to the same car seen in surveillance video last Thursday night.
"Inside of that vehicle were two suspects, along with the gun. The gun was ballistically matched to the bullet that was used to murder Timothy Moriconi," said T.J. Smith, spokesman for Baltimore City Police.
Both the 23-year-old Sleet and the woman with him were taken into custody and police believe both are linked to several street robberies.
Sleet is a repeat offender with a slew of charges in the past, even serving time for armed robbery and firearm charges, but he ended up back on the streets.
"It is a collective approach to addressing violence, certainly beyond just the law enforcement approach but of course we have a major stake and major responsibility," Smith said.
The murder was just one of the dozens of murders in Baltimore last month. The uptick in crime isn't going unnoticed by the Baltimore Police Department who's increased patrols and canceled leave.
Police also said help from the Federal Hill neighborhood is what allowed the case to be closed so quickly. They said without help from the system and the public, a turnaround would have been hard for some to imagine.
"People can't get upset and outraged when a community says we're not going to take it. If you know something, you have to speak up. If you know the guy we're showing on video, you know the guy. If you decide you're going to protect him, then you're complicit in the violence that's going on in the city" Smith said.
"I'll go ahead and make this personal while I'm standing up here. In my brother's case, there was surveillance video available that showed the defendant in that case. There were witnesses who said I'm tired of this and it wasn't the police, it wasn't because I'm T.J. Smith who works for the police, it was because people came together and said I'm tired of this and video surveillance" Smith added.
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