On January 14, 2022, around 3:00 p.m., 29-year-old Eric Branch-Simpson of Brandywine was shot and killed in a parking lot in the 4500 block of Silver Hill Road in Suitland, Maryland. Prince George’s County police found Branch-Simpson suffering from a gunshot wound and he was pronounced dead at the scene.

Detectives determined the shooting was not random and that Branch-Simpson knew his assailant; the fatal encounter reportedly grew out of a dispute between the two men. Investigators identified a suspect within weeks, and on January 28, 2022, police arrested 22-year-old Markees Mings of Suitland. Mings was charged with first- and second-degree murder and other related charges and was held without bond in the Department of Corrections. The case is pending in the court system.

If anyone witnessed the shooting or has information about the dispute that led to Branch-Simpson’s death, please come forward.