News Releases

Montgomery County Police Identify Body of Woman Found in White Oak Apartment

For Immediate Release: Thursday, December 15, 2022

Gaithersburg, MD - Detectives from the Montgomery County Department of Police – Major Crimes Division have identified the body of a pregnant woman discovered in a White Oak apartment.

26-year-old Denise Middleton was allegedly killed by Torrey Damien Moore sometime in October of this year. Middleton’s body was discovered on Friday, December 9, 2022, while Montgomery County Police were executing a search warrant for a homicide committed by Moore on Thursday, December 8.

Officers had obtained a search warrant for Moore’s apartment, located at 11235 Oak Leaf Drive, following the shooting death of 61-year-old Ayalew Wondimu, an employee of the Dash In Convenience Store, located in the 11100 block of New Hampshire Ave. 

Middleton was found in the bedroom, in an advanced stage of decomposition and transported to the Office of the Chief Medical Examiner (OCME) for autopsy. The OCME determined that Middleton was approximately 38-weeks pregnant at the time of her death and that the fetus, a boy, would have lived had Middleton delivered at that time. The autopsy also revealed that Middleton had been shot multiple times.

A warrant has been filed, charging 31-year-old Moore with first-degree murder for Middleton, first-degree murder for the death of a viable fetus, and a crime of violence against a pregnant person. He is currently being held without bond for the murder of Wondimu.

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Release ID: 22-617
Media Contact: S.D. Goff 
Categories: homicide