:quality(70)/arc-anglerfish-arc2-prod-tronc.s3.amazonaws.com/public/ROIOLSGVONCX3JD423QIAIZ6ZM.jpg)
Baltimore police have charged a second man with murder in the shooting death of Carmen Rodriguez at the Kim Deli & Grocery near Patterson Park in December.
Police Commissioner Michael Harrison announced Thursday that police have arrested Martin Brooks, 39, of Parkville, and charged him with first- and second-degree murder in the shooting death of Rodriguez on Dec. 22.
Rodriguez was working at the deli that evening when a gunman entered the store and opened fire while Rodriguez’s children were also in the store, police say.
Brooks also faces armed robbery, theft and weapons charges, court records show.
In January, Terrance Peterson, 29, was charged with murder a day after the department released surveillance footage from inside and outside the store showing two men enter the store before Rodriguez was shot.
Police announced Brooks’ arrests at a news conference Thursday during which officials said they’d arrested four other suspects in three separate homicides in 2019.
Breaking News Alerts
Terreze Hinton, 28, of Baltimore, was charged with murder in the shooting death of Rodriguez Sawyers on Feb. 27, 2019, police said. Sawyers was found shot in the 900 block of N. Monroe St and was pronounced dead shortly after arriving at the hospital that evening.
Police said that Nelson McNorton has been charged with murder in the shooting death of Antonio Modica, who died after being shot in the 1900 block of W. Pratt St. on Oct. 10.
Dominique Byrd, 29, of Baltimore, is charged with murder in the shooting death of Tavon McDonald in the 300 block of N. High St. on Dec. 3, police said. Court records show a warrant for his arrest was issued on Feb. 5 and served on Feb. 11.
A spokeswoman for the state’s public defender’s office, which is representing Brooks and Byrd, declined to comment.
Police said Deshon Thomas is charged with the murder of Antonio Clayton, who was fatally shot in the 2200 block of Sidney Avenue on Dec. 3.
Charges for Hinton, Thomas and McNorton were not listed in online court records Thursday.
The arrests come as police are seeking to clear more homicide cases after the city cleared just 32.1% of such cases in 2019, one of the department’s lowest rates in the last 30 years.