The first week of June 2024 has been particularly deadly for Delaware, marked by a series of violent incidents and fatalities across the state. The events began just after midnight on June 1, when 26-year-old Raekwon Brickhouse was fatally shot at East 3rd Street and North Lombard Street in Wilmington.
Later that same day, at approximately 1:30 AM, firefighters responded to a call in the 16000 block of Atlanta Road in Bridgeville, where they found a house engulfed in flames. with two individuals discovered deceased inside the home.
On the evening of June 2, around 10:45 PM, Brian Halliday was shot and killed in the 13000 block of S. Old State Road in Ellendale. Tyja Best, 26, of Ellendale, was subsequently arrested and charged with Halliday’s murder.
Around the same time, police were called to the 25000 block of Redwing Lane in Rehobeth Shores, Longneck, where they found 61-year-old Dennis Harmon suffering from stab wounds. Harmon later died from his injuries, and his stepson, 25-year-old Christopher Moran, was charged with his murder.
Earlier on June 2, at about 4:00 PM, a 21-year-old man from Bear was killed in a motorcycle accident on E. Chestnut Hill Road in Newark.
On June 3, at approximately 1:30 AM, police responded to a shooting at 400 Little Creek Drive. A 26-year-old man was found at the scene and later succumbed to his injuries at the hospital. Another individual injured in the incident remains hospitalized.
The incidents continued on June 4, when troopers responded at around 5:25 PM to a shooting at the Harmony at Kent Senior Living Center on E. Lebanon Road in Dover. Arriving authorities discovered a man fatally wounded and, during an attempt to negotiate with a second man, ended up shooting and mortally wounding him.
Earlier that day, at 10:47 AM, Millsboro Police and Delaware State Police responded to a shooting on Saint Thomas Boulevard, where the victim later died from gunshot wounds. Nineteen-year-old Malachi Waters has been charged in the killing.
On June 5, at around 9:50 AM, Wilmington police responded to a shooting near 23rd Street and North Street, where they found 30-year-old Ronald Brown suffering from gunshot wounds. Brown was transported to the hospital but later died from his injuries.
Earlier that morning, at around 4:45 AM, Milford police responded to the 500 block of S. Dupont Blvd. in Milford, where they found a 31-year-old man bleeding from his head. Further investigation led officers to a residence in the 6000 block of Pebblebrook Drive in the Brookstone Terrace Development in Milford, where they discovered a 31-year-old woman and a three-year-old girl deceased. Police have detained a person of interest in this case.
This deadly first week of June follows a violent and tragic month of May, marked by a series of harrowing events, including a gun store robbery, a woman raped and carjacked, a man robbed and beaten by six people at a store, home invasions, and multiple fatal accidents.