Annapolis, Maryland – A Crownsville man pleaded guilty Monday to the fatal and non-fatal shooting of two men following an argument at an Edgewater get-together in 2020, State's Attorney Anne Colt Leitess announced.
Wilber Oswaldo Nunez-Menendez, 28, pleaded guilty to Second-Degree Murder, Attempted Second-Degree Murder, and two counts of Use of a Handgun in a Violent Crime in Anne Arundel County Circuit Court in Annapolis. Sentencing is scheduled for April 16, 2024.
"What started as a verbal argument turned to needless gunfire that took one man's life and caused life-threatening injuries for another," Leitess said. "A simple dispute should never lead to gun violence. I want to thank law enforcement for their lengthy efforts to identify the defendant and ultimately, track him out of the country to bring justice."
On November 14, 2020, Anne Arundel County police were called to a home on Brick Church Road in Edgewater for the report of a shooting. Officers located Ronal Alcids Maldonado Quijana, 52, deceased from gunshot wounds and a 28-year-old man who had also been shot.
Witnesses told police they were attending an outdoor party with food, drinks, and a bonfire with friends and co-workers in attendance. They said one of their former co-workers arrived with his nephew and at one point, the nephew got into a verbal argument with the victims.
During the exchange, they said the nephew pulled out a handgun and shot the two victims multiple times. The former co-worker and his nephew then fled the scene in a pickup truck. A witness called an associate of their former co-worker and asked for the name and phone number of the nephew. The associate identified the nephew as "Wilmer Nunez" and provided a phone number. Law enforcement databases found the number had been provided on several occasions by Wilber Oswaldo Nunez-Menendez.
A photograph obtained by police matched the description of the shooter and Nunez-Menendez was later identified through a photo lineup. A warrant was issued, but Nunez-Menendez had fled the country.
On May 11, 2023, he was extradited from El Salvador to Maryland by U.S. Marshals and turned over to the Anne Arundel County police.
Assistant State's Attorney Nancy Jeffein Olin and Assistant State's Attorney Joshua Adrian prosecuted the case on behalf of the citizens of Anne Arundel County, with the Honorable Pamela Alban presiding.