In the winter of 2016, the life of 27-year-old Rayshand Lee Cotton was tragically cut short in Capitol Heights, Maryland. On the morning of Monday, December 19th, a passerby made a grim discovery at the Brooks Road Recreation Center, finding Cotton's body bearing severe burns. Authorities were quickly alerted, and he was pronounced dead at the scene.
An autopsy would later reveal that the burns were not the cause of his death; Rayshand Cotton had been fatally shot.
The investigation into his death swiftly moved forward as detectives from the Prince George's County Police Department began to piece together the events that led to this violent end. They soon identified a 17-year-old acquaintance of Cotton, Demiko Aiken, as a primary suspect. Investigators believed the motive behind the killing was the theft of Cotton's SUV.
The day after the discovery of Cotton's body, police located his stolen vehicle in Capitol Heights. Inside were Aiken and a 16-year-old accomplice. Both teenagers were taken into custody. During questioning, the 16-year-old admitted to assisting Aiken in disposing of Cotton's body after the murder. As a result, Demiko Aiken was charged as an adult with first and second-degree murder and was held on a no-bond status. His younger confederate was charged as a juvenile with being an accessory after the fact. In the wake of these arrests, a reward of up to $25,000 was offered for any information that would lead to an indictment in the case.
