In spring 2016 a planned illicit firearms sale in Northeast Washington, D.C., ended in murder. On the night of April 23, 23-year-old Nuru Frenche of Brandywine, Maryland, went to the 4900 block of Just Street NE with at least $500 intending to buy guns from two men, Nathaniel Taylor and Anthony Blackmone. The meeting was a setup for a robbery. Shortly after Frenche exited his vehicle, a confrontation began and he was shot in the back of the head.

Police arrived about 10:42 p.m.; Frenche was taken to a hospital and died the following day. Frenche’s companion escaped unharmed. Arrests followed: Anthony Blackmone was arrested in May 2016 and Nathaniel Taylor was arrested in February 2017 and charged with first-degree murder while armed. Blackmone later pleaded guilty to voluntary manslaughter and attempted robbery, and Taylor pleaded guilty to second-degree murder while armed under a plea deal that could bring up to 20 years.

Did anyone in the area see activity around Just Street NE that night or know more about the planned transaction?