On January 22, 2022, 26-year-old Dijoun Beasley of Dorchester was shot inside the Forever 21 at South Shore Plaza in Braintree while at the mall with his girlfriend and a three-year-old in a stroller. Surveillance footage reportedly showed an exchange of words between Beasley and a man identified as 19-year-old Julius Hammond-Desir of Maynard, who then revealed a handgun hidden under his shirt. Beasley walked away and was struck by a single gunshot. He was taken to a Boston hospital with life-threatening injuries and later died.

A multiagency manhunt followed. On January 27, 2022, 27-year-old Samantha Schwartz of Attleboro was arrested in Quincy and charged with being an accessory after the fact to murder and with carrying a firearm; prosecutors said she had moved between locations and missed court dates after the shooting. On February 16, 2022, police located and arrested Julius Hammond-Desir in Dorchester; he was charged with Beasley’s murder and pleaded not guilty at arraignment.