In the quiet neighborhood of Dundalk, Maryland, the afternoon of March 2, 2022, was shattered by the sound of gunfire. In the 1900 block of Ewald Avenue, Tayvon Scott, a 43-year-old man, was found suffering from multiple gunshot wounds. He was rushed to a nearby hospital, but his injuries proved to be fatal. The shooting, which occurred around 2:30 p.m., left neighbors in shock, with one resident recounting hearing as many as six or seven gunshots.
Another neighbor saw a man leaning out of a van and glass on the ground in the immediate aftermath. Those who knew Scott remembered him as a 'great guy' who lived on the street where the tragedy unfolded.
For more than two years, the case of Tayvon Scott's death remained without any publicly announced suspects or arrests, leaving a community to wonder and a family to grieve without answers. However, in October 2024, a major breakthrough was announced by the Baltimore City State's Attorney's Office. Two men, Cornell Moore and Keith Russell, were indicted by a grand jury in connection with a violent, murder-for-hire enterprise that had been operating in and around Baltimore. The indictment, which included 41 counts for Moore and 37 for Russell, listed Tayvon Scott as one of seven victims of this criminal organization.
The indictment alleges that Moore and Russell were part of a criminal gang that was compensated for committing acts of violence, including murder, to establish dominance over rival gangs and drug trafficking organizations. The enterprise is said to have been in operation since at least October 2020, and its members allegedly used stolen and carjacked vehicles to carry out their violent acts. Moore and Russell face a litany of charges, including first-degree murder, participation in a criminal gang, and use of a firearm in the commission of a crime of violence. An indictment is not a finding of guilt, and the suspects are presumed innocent until proven guilty. The investigation into the full scope of the murder-for-hire enterprise is ongoing.
