PRESS RELEASE

July 25, 2011

For more information, contact: John J. McCarthy, (240) 777-7390

Seth Zucker, Communications Director, (240) 777-7345

MAN PLEADS GUILTY TO FIRST DEGREE MURDER IN DOMESTIC HOMIDICE

John J. McCarthy, State�s Attorney for Montgomery County, announced that Bernardo Flores-Olvera, 33, of Silver Spring, Maryland pled guilty to First Degree Murder today in front of the Honorable Marielsa Bernard, Circuit Court, Montgomery County, Maryland. Sentencing is scheduled for October 7, 2011, in front of Judge Bernard. There is no cap on executed incarceration as part of the plea.

On February 8, 2011, at approximately 11:58 p.m., the defendant called Montgomery County Police to report that he had killed his wife. After being taken into custody, the defendant provided the keys to his apartment, located at 1018 Quebec Terrace, in Silver Spring, where police found the victim, Elizabeth Velez Vasquez, dead in one of the bedrooms. Upon questioning, the defendant told the police that he had gotten into an argument with his wife because he suspected she was being unfaithful. As the argument escalated, the defendant sent their nine year old child to another apartment. The couple�s 2 year old and 3 month old children were still in the apartment. The defendant then confronted the victim in the kitchen, where he picked up a kitchen knife from the butcher block. The victim then ran out of the kitchen and into a bedroom. The defendant then followed her into the bedroom and after their argument escalated, began to stab her with the knife. Florez-Olvera told police he killed his wife because she told him she did not love him anymore. The couple�s two youngest children were in the apartment at the time of the murder. An autopsy showed that the victim had been stabbed or cut 79 times, including 5 stabbing wounds and 74 cutting wounds.

�The defendant has accepted responsibility for this brutal killing� McCarthy said �Our thoughts and prayers remain with the victim�s friends and family.�

In making today�s announcement, McCarthy thanked Assistant State�s Attorneys Karla Smith and Donna Fenton for their prosecution of the case. McCarthy also praised the Montgomery County Police Department for their investigation of the case.

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PRESS RELEASE

July 21, 2011

For more information, contact: John J. McCarthy, (240) 777-7390

Seth Zucker, Communications Director, (240) 777-7345

MAN CONVICTED OF HATE CRIME FOR SLASHING TIRE OF HISPANIC MAN

John J. McCarthy, State�s Attorney for Montgomery County, announced that Steven Armstrong, 53, of Silver Spring, Maryland, was convicted today by a Montgomery County jury of one count of Malicious Destruction of Property, and one count of Committing a Crime Against Another Based on Race or Ethnicity. The defendant was held pending sentencing. Sentencing is scheduled before the Honorable Robert Greenberg on September 30, 2011.

On July 15, 2010, Montgomery County Police were contacted by a Hispanic man who reported that his tires had been slashed 20 times over the past four years. Residents of the neighborhood around the defendant�s house, reported that more than 10 victims, almost all Hispanic, had their tires slashed. On August 23, 2010, at around midnight, Elmer Contreras heard his car alarm go off. When he got outside, the defendant was crouched beside his tire with a sharp object. When asked what he was doing, the defendant replied �I hate you Spanish people, I hate you all.� Police responded to the defendant�s home, and he admitted to vandalizing Mr. Contreras� car and other cars in the neighborhood.

�We continue to urge anyone who believes they have been the victim of a crime to contact police.� McCarthy said in reaction to the sentence. �We cannot allow any segment of our community to become targets for criminal activity, and we absolutely will not tolerate crimes being committed against residents because of their ethnicity.�

In making today�s announcement, McCarthy thanked Assistant State�s Attorneys George Simms and Curtis Zeager for their prosecution of the case. McCarthy also praised the Montgomery County Police Department, for their investigation of the case. Special acknowledgment should go to Community Services Officer Sharif Hidayat and Det. Matt Vendemio from the Fourth Police District for their investigation into this case.

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PRESS RELEASE

June 29, 2011

For more information, contact: John J. McCarthy, (240) 777-7390

Seth Zucker, Communications Director, (240) 777-7345

RAVEN MASTERS SENTENCED TO 11 CONSECUTIVE LIFE SENTENCES PLUS 40 YEARS FOR ATTEMPTED MURDER OF POLICE OFFICER AND TWENTY-THREE OTHERS

John J. McCarthy, State�s Attorney for Montgomery County, announced today that Raven Masters, 32, of Hyattsville, MD, was sentenced today by the Honorable Nelson Rupp, Circuit Court, Montgomery County, Maryland, to 24 life sentences and almost 400 years in prison on 41 charges related to an apartment fire that the defendant set targeting a Montgomery County Detective. Eleven of those life sentences are consecutive to one another. Besides the life sentences, Judge Rupp also sentenced the defendant to 40 years consecutive time. In total the defendant will have to serve 11 consecutive life sentences plus 40 years. Masters was found guilty on Tuesday April 5^th, 2011, of 41 charges related to an apartment fire that the defendant set targeting a Montgomery County Detective. Masters was found guilty of 24 counts of Attempted First Degree Murder, 12 counts of First Degree Arson, one count of Obstruction of Justice, one count of Intimidating or Corrupting a Witness, one count of Retaliation for Testimony, one count of Theft over $500, and one count of Fourth Degree Burglary.

At around 4:00 a.m. on January 19, 2010, Masters arrived at the apartment complex where a Montgomery County Officer, Detective John Distel, lived. He disabled the buildings sprinkler system and then cut the power to the building. He then poured a large amount of gasoline in the hallway outside Distel�s apartment, and then likely placed homemade napalm outside the door. He then poured gasoline on all three floors of the apartment. Shortly thereafter, Det. Distel was awakened by a loud bang. When he attempted to open his door, he was met by a wall of fire, which soon entered the apartment. Det. Distel and his family, including his children, had to be rescued from their balcony. Besides Det. Distel, there were 23 other people in the apartment building when Masters set it on fire. Terrified residents desperately fled their homes; and they either had to jump off their balconies or wait for rescue. The building suffered extensive damage, but miraculously, no one was killed. Witnesses revealed that a man wearing a dark sweatshirt of the type that Masters wore was seen in the building, and police obtained evidence that Masters had been researching witnesses.

Det. Distel was scheduled to testify against Masters in a Burglary case the morning the fire was set.

�This crime was an attack upon the very foundation of our criminal justice system� McCarthy said. �The planned assassination of a Montgomery County Police Officer, and his family, represents an assault on everyone in law enforcement and threatens the very foundations of our society. A crime such as this sends shock waves through the entire law enforcement community, and causes those who serve to not only fear for their own safety, but also the safety of their family. We have no greater obligation than to ensure that those who serve their community are not targeted because of that service. Today�s sentence sends the clearest possible signal that we will protect the men and women who place themselves in danger everyday on behalf of our community. Because of the outstanding work of the Montgomery County Police , the Montgomery County Fire and Explosive Investigations Section, and prosecutors from my office, a very dangerous, evil man has been permanently removed from our community. Raven Masters will die in jail.�

In making the announcement, McCarthy thanked Senior Assistant State�s Peter Feeney and Assistant State�s Attorney John Lalos for their prosecution of the case. He also praised the Montgomery County Police Department and the Montgomery County Fire and Explosive Investigations Section for their investigation of the case.

Release Date Title

5/18/11 Sentence: State v. Alejandro Roman

5/10/2011 Sentence: State v. Christine Devaux

6/22/2010 Sentences: State v. Traimne Allen, State v. Harold Diggs

6/8/2010 Sentence: State v. Roger Greenberg

5/14/2010 Sentence: State v. Virgilio Nunez

4/22/2010 Sentence: State v. Claude Harrison

4/19/2010 Sentence: State v. Jose Vasquez

3/22/2010 Sentence: State v. Renee Bowman

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