In the quiet, early morning hours of August 25, 2024, a tragic event unfolded inside a home in New Market, Maryland, ending the life of 34-year-old Sean Antoine Lange. Lange, a Black / African American man from Arlington, Virginia, was discovered deceased alongside 33-year-old Crimea Malita Baker in an upstairs bedroom of their residence on Mandalong Court. Both had sustained multiple gunshot wounds in what authorities would later describe as a 'heinous, targeted double murder.' The investigation suggests the fatal shots were fired around 1:30 a.m., a time when the house was not entirely still.
Present in the home at the time of the shooting were four children, all under the age of 13. In a harrowing ordeal, the children hid and remained concealed for hours until they felt it was safe to emerge. It was one of the children who made the grim discovery of the two victims. Law enforcement officials confirmed that Baker was the mother of all four children, and Lange was the father of one. The couple was living together at the time of their deaths. Fortunately, none of the children were physically harmed during the incident.
The investigation into the double homicide quickly led authorities to a primary suspect: David Phillip Turner, the 33-year-old ex-husband of Crimea Baker. Turner, a resident of Miami, Florida, was apprehended in Fort Lauderdale on September 28, 2024, with the assistance of the FBI and local police. The motive appeared to be one of rage and anger, with investigators finding that 42 rounds had been fired at close range.
Following his arrest, Turner was charged with two counts of first-degree murder, home invasion, and the use of a firearm in the commission of a violent felony. He was later extradited from Florida to Frederick County, Maryland, to face these charges. Upon his return to Maryland, Turner waived his bond review hearing and was ordered to be held without bond. The local sheriff's office assured the public that the killings were not a random act and that there was no ongoing threat to the community.
