Arrest Made in Connection with Discarded Gun that Killed Washington D.C. Police Officer

WASHINGTON - Tyrell Lamont Bailey, 27, of Hillcrest Heights, Maryland, was arrested last night and charged by criminal complaint with multiple counts in connection with a handgun he discarded along I-295 in Northeast Washington D.C. The firearm later discharged and killed Investigator Wayne David, 52, an officer with the Metropolitan Police Department (MPD). The charges were announced by U.S. Attorney Matthew M. Graves, Acting Special Agent in Charge James VanVliet of the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives (ATF), and Chief Pamela A. Smith of the Metropolitan Police Department.

Bailey had an initial appearance this afternoon in U.S. District Court in the District of Columbia. He is charged with possession of a firearm by a felon, possession of a firearm with an obliterated serial number, and unlawfully discarding a firearm and ammunition.

According to court documents, members of the MPD Robbery Suppression Unit (RSU) were patrolling in the area of the 1600 block of Kenilworth Ave. NE, about 5:30 p.m. on August 28, 2024, when they spotted a man with long black dreadlocks sprint away from them. As he fled, the man held the waistband of his shorts in a manner consistent with carrying a concealed firearm. The officers gave chase as the man ran through the DC Public Housing Complex on the 4400 block of Quarles Street and then jumped a retaining wall that borders Interstate 295. Officers saw the man drop something into a storm drain on the shoulder of southbound lane of the highway. The man then ran further, crossed to the northbound side of the interstate, flagged down a passing motorcyclist, and fled the area going northbound riding on the back of the motorcycle.

Investigator Wayne David attempted to recover the firearm from the storm drain. While doing so, the firearm discharged and killed him. Technicians from the Department of Forensic Sciences responded to scene about 7 p.m., removed the metal grate covering the storm drain, and recovered a Smith & Wesson M+P Shield 40, .40 caliber handgun with an obliterated serial number. DFS also recovered a white shoe from the southbound side of I-295 near Quarles Street NE where the man was captured by video jumping over the wall.

Detectives were later able to identify the defendant through a review of related video surveillance.

This case is being investigated by the ATF's NIBIN Investigations Unit which includes members of the ATF and MPD. Valuable assistance is being provided by the FBI Washington Field Office. It is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Kyle McWaters.

A criminal indictment is merely an allegation, and all defendants are presumed innocent until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt in a court of law.

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