ANNAPOLIS, MD — A $20,000 reward is available for information that leads to an arrest for the fatal shooting of a U.S. Naval Academy mother, authorities declared Wednesday. The joint reward is sponsored by the FBI and the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives, a press release specified. This comes in addition to the $2,000 reward from Metro Crime Stoppers, officials wrote.
“We are hoping this reward will help convince someone with information to do the right thing and pick up the phone,” stated Rachel Byrd, acting special agent in charge of the FBI’s Baltimore Field Office. “We not only owe it to the victim and her family, but we owe it to the entire community to see that anyone responsible for her death is not allowed to walk away.”
The victim was accidentally shot and killed in downtown Annapolis early Tuesday morning, police announced. Officers informed that she was in town for her son’s induction into the U.S. Naval Academy. Authorities identified the woman as 57-year-old Michelle Jordan Cummings of Houston.
“This was a horrific outcome for the kind of everyday gun violence that many cities across America see,” Mayor Gavin Buckley said at a press conference. “Annapolis sadly is not immune.”
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The shooting happened around 12:21 a.m., an incident report added. Cummings was sitting on a hotel patio in the unit block of West Street with the parents of another incoming midshipman, Annapolis Chief of Police Edward Jackson explained.
Jackson mentioned that the shots were fired on nearby Pleasant Street. Cummings was not the intended target, the chief clarified, but multiple stray bullets struck her. The shooter was aiming for two uninjured victims and a parked car, Jackson indicated.
“Celebrating their son going into one of the best institutions in the United States turned into a tragic event,” Jackson commented, noting that the son is a prospect for the Navy Football team.
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Medics pronounced Cummings dead on the scene, the write-up disclosed.
“My job is to make sure the city is safe,” Jackson said. “Every time this happens, it’s very upsetting. I take it personally.”
The Annapolis Police Department did not name a suspect, but Jackson suggested that he has a few leads. Authorities offered a cash reward of up to $2,000 for details that lead to an arrest or an indictment.
Detectives asked anybody with information to call 410-260-3439. Tipsters can stay anonymous by dialing 1-866-7LOCKUP (1-866-756-2587), visiting metrocrimestoppers.org or using the “P3 Tips” mobile application. Informants can reach the FBI at 1-800-CALL-FBI (1-800-225-5324).
“Turn yourself in,” Jackson told the shooter. “We’re coming after you.”
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