District Heights community shaken after third shooting in seven days

PRINCE GEORGE'S COUNTY, Md. - Police have identified the victim killed in a shooting Saturday in District Heights.

The victim was identified Monday as 21-year-old Jacquis Frye of Capitol Heights. Just before 4:30 p.m. Saturday, Dec. 21, police responded to a shooting by Walker Mill Road and Karen Boulevard. There, officers found Frye in the roadway with gunshot wounds. He was pronounced dead on the scene.

The shooting marked the third case on Walker Mill Road within a week and the second fatal one.

A woman FOX 5 spoke with works in a shopping center nearby and said the amount of violence happening so close is unsettling.

"I just wish the community would do better. It’s sad to see people lose their lives at a high rate," she said. "It’s very concerning. We just keep the door locked, stay very vigilant."

As of Monday, detectives are working to determine a motive and identify a suspect or suspects in the latest Walker Mill Road shooting. According to crime data online posted by Prince George’s County police, there have been at least 99 murders so far this year.  That figure is slightly larger than this time last year, though overall it is comparable.

A police spokesperson told FOX 5 Monday, that despite its portal reporting 99 murders as of this writing, the number of homicides reported by its homicide unit stands at 96.

"This does not include any homicides that occurred within a municipality," an email from the department states.

A man who works by Walker Mill Road said it was disheartening to see young people resort to violence.

"The DMV, it’s almost like background noise. They’re either shooting at each other, or shooting in the air. Nowadays, it’s different than it used to be," he said. "When I was growing up, we would go about fighting, having hands. Now I just think everyone just goes get a gun."

As a whole, he said he wants people to think twice before choosing violence.

"You just got to think about each other. Nothing is worth losing your life over. I served in the military for ten years and to come home and see stuff like this, it’s sad," he said.

Anyone with information on the Walker Mill Road case who would like to speak to a Homicide Unit detective may call 301-516-2512.