News Releases

Major Crimes Detectives Arrest Suspect in 2023 Homicide

For Immediate Release: Tuesday, February 10, 2026

Gaithersburg, MD - A 22-year-old has been arrested and charged in connection with the July 9, 2023 death of a Gaithersburg man in Seneca Creek in Germantown. Tips from the public identified the victim as 45-year-old Jose Israel Centeno Velasquez of Gaithersburg.

On July 9, 2023, Montgomery County Department of Police 1st District officers and Maryland Natural Resources Police responded to the area of Black Rock Road and Seneca Creek Trail for a report of a body in the creek. The body was transported to the Office of the Chief Medical Examiner, who later determined the victim died of multiple injuries and the manner of death was ruled a homicide. 

Detectives with the Montgomery County Police Department - Major Crimes Division conducted the investigation and identified Franklin Villalobos Gomez as a suspect. Detectives obtained an arrest warrant on February 8, 2026, charging him with first-degree murder. The Montgomery County Police Criminal Street Gang Unit took Franklin Villalobos Gomez into custody on February 9, 2026.

He is being held at the Montgomery County Central Processing Unit pending a bond hearing scheduled for February 10, 2026.

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Release ID: 26-061
Media Contact: R. Skelton  
Categories: arrest , homicide