On the evening of September 4, 2021, a burst of gunfire shattered the peace in the 600 block of Longfellow Street, Northwest in Washington, D.C., leaving a scene of chaos and tragedy. When the sounds of gunshots subsided, 24-year-old Keenan Braxton, a male resident of Northwest, D.C., was found among the victims of the mass shooting. He, along with Donnetta Dyson, 31, and Johnny Joyner, 37, succumbed to their injuries at the scene, while three other individuals were wounded but survived.
The attack was not a random act of violence; investigators later determined it was a targeted assault stemming from a rivalry between neighborhood crews.
The investigation into the triple homicide quickly gained momentum as detectives from the Metropolitan Police Department's Homicide Branch began piecing together the events of that fatal evening. Their efforts led them to identify a black Honda Accord sedan as the suspect vehicle. Authorities believe that at approximately 7:33 p.m., multiple assailants emerged from this vehicle and indiscriminately fired into a neighborhood gathering before fleeing the scene. The senseless act of violence was later described by prosecutors as turning the residential block into a 'war zone.' The motive behind the shooting was determined to be in retaliation for another shooting that had occurred just an hour earlier.
Within weeks, the investigation led to a series of arrests. On October 13, 2021, Erwin Dubose, Jr., 27, and Kamar Queen, 24, were apprehended and charged with first-degree murder while armed. The case continued to develop with the arrest of Toyia Johnson, 49, on October 18, 2021, for allegedly acting as an accessory after the fact. In the following months, more suspects were taken into custody. Damonta Thompson, 24, was arrested on January 18, 2022, also on a charge of first-degree murder while armed. The list of those allegedly involved grew to include William Johnson-Lee, 22, and Mussay Rezene, 32.
The legal proceedings that followed brought the full scope of the conspiracy to light. Erwin Dubose, Kamar Queen, Damonta Thompson, and William Johnson-Lee faced charges including conspiracy, premeditated first-degree murder while armed, and assault with intent to kill while armed. Toyia Johnson and Mussay Rezene were charged with accessory after the fact and tampering with physical evidence for their roles in attempting to help the shooters evade capture, which included burning the vehicle used in the attack. After a lengthy trial, on July 3, 2025, a jury found all six defendants guilty of their respective charges. The sentencing reflected the severity of their crimes, with the three shooters receiving sentences of over 100 years each, the getaway driver receiving a 35-year sentence, and the accessories receiving lesser sentences for their roles in the aftermath of the deadly shooting.
