City Beat
- Staff Writers
- Jul 22
- 7 min read
A roundup of local news, events, and announcements
Laurel Hit with String of Violent Crimes in May
The month of May saw an unusual surge of violent crime within Laurel’s city limits. Six people were shot and three stabbed—one fatally—in four separate incidents that garnered both local and national media attention.
May 5: After the crowd at a Cinco de Mayo celebration at Amigos Mexican Grill spilled over into the parking lot and caused traffic disruptions, the Laurel Police Department (LPD) shut down the event at 8:30 pm. As police were trying to disperse the crowd, a fight broke out near Longhorn Steakhouse and shots were fired, injuring three people. The shooter was later identified as Michael Dakernu Dennah, 24, of Beltsville. He was still at large as of early July, and the U.S. Marshals have joined the manhunt.
While police and medics were still dealing with that shooting, they were called to a stabbing in the same parking lot, finding two people suffering knife wounds. The suspect in that incident, determined to be domestic in nature, was quickly identified as Shon Juan Cook, Jr., of Columbia. He turned himself in the next day and is awaiting trial.
All five victims sustained non-life-threatening injuries. One of the shooting victims announced in late May that she was suing Amigos for failing to provide adequate security at the event.
May 9: A few days later, a fatal stabbing occurred at the Aventura at Contee Crossing apartment complex, adjacent to the scene of the Cinco de Mayo violence. Responding LPD officers found Dwayne Julien, 48, of Laurel, suffering from multiple stab wounds; he later died. Witnesses helped to track down the suspect, Samai Gahyle, 26, of Arlington, Virginia, who was charged with multiple homicide-related offenses; police said he knew the victim.
May 15: A fight between two groups of teens led to another shooting, this time at Discovery Park. One juvenile male suffered a non-life-threatening gunshot wound. While on scene, LPD officers heard more gunshots, coming from Eighth Street—not far from the police station. Luckily, no additional victims were found. LPD later released a photo of the shooter, identified as a 16-year-old Laurel High School student. As of early July, he had not been located.
May 24: Ten days later, Laurel residents again heard sirens as social media posts talked about a shooting near Harris Teeter. LPD later confirmed rumors that the shooting occurred during a parking lot meetup to complete an online sales transaction. Two people, including a bystander, received non-life-threatening gunshot injuries. Details were scarce about a potential suspect, with LPD saying only that the investigation was continuing.
Anyone with information about any of the above incidents can contact LPD at 301-498-0092 or anonymously at LPDtips@laurel.md.us
City Takes Punitive Action, Steps up Prevention
Shortly after the Cinco de Mayo incidents, the City of Laurel on May 8 suspended Amigos’ use and occupancy permit. In a May 11 public notice, the city said Amigos would remain closed for “30 days or until all conditions established by the city are satisfied.” The statement alleged that Amigos had misrepresented its security plan and the intended use of the space on its permit application. LPD Chief Russ Hamill later revealed at a town hall meeting that Amigos had said 12 off-duty Prince George’s County police officers would provide security for the event, but responding officers had found none.
Amigos’ closure caused a firestorm of reaction on Laurel-centric social media, with commenters divided between blaming the restaurant for letting things get out of hand and deeming the suspension unfair. City Councilmember Kyla Clark submitted a memorandum to city officials stating concerns over the potential impact of a 30-day shutdown, namely “lost revenue, employee hardship, strained vendor relationships, and ... financial pressure that can lead to permanent closure.” Discussions within pertinent city departments and between the city and Amigos led to a fairly quick resolution: Amigos reopened on May 14. But the incident came at a cost: Amigos is banned from holding outdoor tent events for three years, must close no later than midnight, and must hire law enforcement officers from 8 pm to midnight Thursday through Saturday.
In response to community concerns over the violence, Mayor Keith Sydnor shifted the focus of an already scheduled May 20 City Hall in the Park, alloting most of the time to Chief Hamill and special guest Tara H. Jackson, Maryland State’s Attorney. Both discussed the difficulty of prosecuting juvenile-involved crimes—a subject Hamill raised last year in the wake of over 100 cars being stolen or vandalized. Both officials have asked the Maryland legislature to revisit laws that put juvenile offenders back on the streets. “We’re witnessing a lack of accountability,” Hamill said. He also pointed to a severe truancy problem at Laurel High School and called on parents and guardians to “stay engaged and know where your kids are.”
Hamill outlined extra measures LPD implemented:
deployed “considerable” assets throughout Laurel, including at Laurel High School;
increased student engagement to help build trust and community;
launched a drone program to provide first-response assistance; and,
sought funding in the city’s 2026–27 budget to install license plate readers.
Hamill stressed the need for community awareness and assistance. “[The police] are not a magic pill; we need the community’s help. At the same time, we the police have to take responsibility, too, for the events of that 10-day period.”
Mayor, Council at Odds over Proposed $1 Million Assistance Program
Also in May, an unusual situation arose at city hall: two mayoral vetoes were cast, followed by council overrides. Mayor Sydnor had added a $1-million housing assistance program to the 2026-27 budget close to the submission deadline, raising questions and concerns from councilmembers. Under the mayor’s proposed Family Resiliency Program, the city would partner with Laurel Advocacy and Referral Services (LARS) to provide 100 families with $750/month for one year to help them gain financial independence. Sydnor proposed funding the program using interest from a high-yield investment account, previously tapped for other projects, including aspects of the city’s multi-service center. Councilmembers lauded the program’s intent but questioned whether an appropriate process had been followed, citing the need for council discussion and public input before earmarking such a large sum of money. Councilmembers also took issue with $30,000 Sydnor had allotted toward the Laurel Independent, with most advocating for $45,000.
At its May 27 public meeting, the council passed two budget amendments: one temporarily removing the mayor’s program until details could be worked out; and a second amendment to increase the Independent’s allotment to $45,000. Both amendments passed in a 4-1 vote. The next day, Sydnor notified council members via memo that he was using his line-item power to veto both amendments. (Full disclosure: The council’s second amendment also raised from $4,000 to $6,000 the amount allotted to Voices of Laurel, which was not at issue in the mayor’s veto.)
At a special June 1 meeting, the council voted unanimously to override both mayoral vetoes. In public statements, councilmembers reiterated their previous concerns over how the assistance program was added to the budget, while Sydnor stressed multiple times that he had “followed the process to a T.” Council President Brencis Smith ended the meeting with a vow to work with the mayor and the council to find workable solutions.
Mid-Year Analysis: City sees highest single-month violent crime volume in over 3 years
By Hannah Hoffman
What may have felt like a difficult crime season this Spring for Laurel residents was confirmed by Voices of Laurel (VoL) in its 2026 year-to-date (YTD) analysis. A thorough review of publicly available data posted online by the Laurel Police Department (LPD) showed an unusual spike of violent crime in May, with 25 incidents within city limits—84% of which were deemed aggravated assault. This marks the highest recorded month of violent crime since March 2023, when 29 incidents were recorded.
Violent crime in May alone was equal to the combined volume in January, February, March and April 2026. Many attribute the incidents at Amigos Restaurant, Discovery Park, Harris Teeter, and Aventura at Contee Crossing as evidence of increased crime in Laurel; however, these high-profile events account for just 20% of the month’s total. Twenty-one other violent crimes also occurred in May that were not largely publicized or documented on the LPD’s Daily Crime Record (DCR). These incidents were, however, included in the May Monthly Crime Report. A disclaimer on the DCR states that it is “not a comprehensive list of all police related activity for the city of Laurel for the dates posted”; an LPD spokesperson noted that the publicly available DCR often omits incidents related to domestic violence, suicide, overdoses, and activity related to minors. While this may explain why 21 violent incidents were not listed on the DCR, VoL discovered that the stabbing at Aventura Crossing incident was also not recorded on the DCR and are unaware of any possible reasons for its omission.
Lower violent crime levels recorded in January through April 2026 seemed to offset the massive increase experienced in the singular month of May. But even despite the May violent crime surge, year-over-year (YOY) violent crime is still on track with previous years’ trends at 10% of total crime and has, on average, drastically improved since 2023 YOY. Total violent crime recorded from January through May 2023 was more than double the count for the same period in 2026.
Current data shows property crime fluctuated in the first few months of 2026. April shows the highest on record this year at 102 incidents, likely due to a spate of Honda Civic airbag thefts that occurred on the night of April 22 in Oldtown. The lowest month on record this year was February, with 74 reported property crime incidents.
To better understand the geography and spread of crime, VoL geocoded the DCR, which provides an approximate location for each incident, often by block or intersection. VoL found that while the majority of 2026 violent crime occurred in central and southern Laurel, property crime has generally remained high across almost every neighborhood within the city. The most common property crime to affect every neighborhood over the last three years is vehicle-related crime (theft from auto, vehicle break-ins, auto theft, etc.); it accounted for 42% of property crime in 2025 YOY and currently accounts for 49% of property crime YTD in 2026.
It’s no surprise, then, that LPD has stayed in demand. The data shows a 15% increase in the average month’s call log between 2025 and 2026 YOY. Calls for service are on track to hit almost 65,000 by the end of this calendar year, which would mark an estimated 9,000 more calls than in 2025.
Author’s note: LPD did not provide missing DCR data for January 1-8, 2026 before this issue went to print. Additionally, there are many inconsistencies and errors across LPD data that have not been addressed or corrected, despite several VoL attempts to clarify with LPD. VoL used discretion to classify and categorize the DCR based on universal crime definitions and common sense.
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