In the late hours of a Sunday evening in November 2020, a fatal encounter unfolded at the New Carrollton Metro station, forever altering the lives of two men. Demetrio Santos-Barros, a male from Hyattsville, Maryland, was at the station when he was involved in an altercation. The dispute appeared to have concluded, but the other individual, Abel Rojas Guzman of Riverdale, would later return.
On that night of November 8th, the sound of gunfire pierced the air around 11:20 p.m..
Metro Transit Police officers responded to the scene to find Demetrio Santos-Barros suffering from multiple gunshot wounds. Despite immediate medical attention, he was pronounced dead at the station. Investigators quickly determined that the shooting was not a random act of violence but rather the tragic culmination of the earlier dispute.
Through witness statements and a review of video footage, detectives identified Abel Rojas Guzman, then 28 years old, as the suspected shooter. The investigation revealed that following the initial confrontation, Guzman allegedly left and returned to the station armed with a handgun. It is alleged that he then approached Santos-Barros and fired multiple times.
Three days later, on November 11, 2020, Metro Transit Police, with assistance from the Capital Area Regional Fugitive Task Force, arrested Abel Rojas Guzman without incident. He was subsequently charged with first-degree murder and other related charges in connection with the death of Demetrio Santos-Barros. Guzman was taken into custody in Prince George's County to await his first court appearance.
