In the quiet, pre-dawn hours of August 21, 2022, the life of 19-year-old Carlos Benitez-Arevalo of Manassas, Virginia, was tragically cut short in Capitol Heights, Maryland. A Hispanic male, he was discovered with a gunshot wound outside a gas station located on the 1300 block of Ritchie Road. Prince George's County Police officers were dispatched to the scene at approximately 2:40 a.m., but their arrival was too late; Benitez-Arevalo was pronounced dead at the scene.
This violent act was one of two unrelated fatal shootings to occur in Prince George's County within a mere six-hour window.
The investigation into Benitez-Arevalo's death was immediately launched and remains an active and ongoing case. Detectives are diligently working to establish a motive and to identify any potential suspects involved in the shooting. To date, no arrests have been made, and authorities have not publicly identified any persons of interest. In an effort to generate leads, a substantial reward of up to $25,000 is being offered for any information that results in the arrest and indictment of the individual or individuals responsible for this homicide.
A complex layer was added to the investigation when it was revealed that Benitez-Arevalo was the primary suspect in a homicide that had occurred in Manassas, Virginia, just two days prior to his own death. On August 19, 2022, Dalton Jakob Moore was shot and killed, and authorities in Prince William County had identified Benitez-Arevalo as the person of interest. Following Benitez-Arevalo's death, the Manassas homicide case was closed by exception, due to the death of the offender. While his death occurred in what officials have termed an unrelated incident, the shadow of the prior event lingers over the ongoing investigation into his own untimely demise. The Prince George's County Police Department continues to seek information from the public to bring closure to the family of Carlos Benitez-Arevalo.
