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Local Crime & Public Safety

15-year-old arrested in killing in Northwest D.C.

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February 8, 2024 at 9:25 a.m. EST
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1 min

A 15-year-old from Maryland was arrested Wednesday in connection with a fatal shooting that occurred in December in Northwest Washington’s Brightwood Park area, according to D.C. police.

The teen, who lives in Bowie, Md., faces a first-degree murder charge when he is extradited to D.C., police said in a statement. He is being charged as a juvenile, and his name was not made public.

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The shooting occurred about 11:45 a.m. on Dec. 18 in the 5400 block of Illinois Avenue NW, near Kennedy Street and Georgia Avenue. Police said Jihad Darden, 27, was struck and taken to a hospital in a private vehicle, where he died.

Authorities have not commented on a possible motive in the shooting.

Darden was the District’s 263rd homicide victim of 2023, which pushed the city’s annual count of killings to its highest level since 1997. The city ended with 274 homicides.

A person who answered the phone at a house linked to Darden’s relatives on Thursday declined to comment.