GHETTO DAYS IN WHEATON: Two charged in murder of Eric Melgar
WHEATON, MD. — Police have identified the dead man killed by gunfire in the Wheaton Metro Station as Eric Melgar and his alleged killers as well.
On July 14, 2015 when shots rang out in broad daylight, citizens fled from the area while Metro ordered trains to bypass the Wheaton Metro station.
With gang violence sweeping through the former middle class communities of Silver Spring and Wheaton, Md., come stabbings, shootings and murders often associated with drug dealing and Mexican gangs. The latest such murder to take place in Wheaton, came the day before Montgomery County prosecutors and police held a press conference on Reedie Drive to discuss the indictment of the accused killer of the Lyons sisters who vanished on March 25, 1975.
The following information has been released by Montgomery County Police in reference to the 7/14/15 homicide investigation.
Names released in Wheaton homicide.
The victim is identified as Eric Melgar, age 20.
Douglas Shannon Chase, 19, of the District & Brent D. Sanderson, 18, of Rockville, have been charged with 1st degree murder.
At approximately 7:06 p.m. on July 14, 4th District officers and Metro Transit Police responded to the report of shots fired inside the parking garage at the Wheaton Metro station located at 11171 Georgia Avenue.
Police say that Melgar was transported to an area hospital and later died. His official cause of death will be determined by an autopsy by the Medical Examiner’s Office in Baltimore. Persons of interest were interviewed by Major Crimes Division detectives. The motive for the homicide remains under investigation.
Melgar resided at 3205 Henderson Ave. in Silver Spring. He was charged with theft by Montgomery County Police Officer M. C. Miglianti on June 12, 2014 and Montgomery County States Attorney John McCarthy dropped the charges against him on Aug. 24, 2014.
On Nov. 10, 2014, Melgar was charged with five counts of armed robbery, assault and theft by Montgomery County Officer PFC Deleon. Those charges are pending in Circuit Court and will soon be mitigated by his murder as dead men tell no tales, not even that he was not guilty, if he was.
Chase appears to be starting off his criminal career at the age of 19 with first degree murder with a dose of armed robbery filed in March. Chase lives in the District of Columbia at 6103 14th Street N.W. and faces his first court hearing on Aug. 14, 2015 in Rockville. Chase is listed in court records as black and Melgar as white while his name is often a Latino name. The charge against Chase was sworn by Montgomery County Detective R. Heverly.
Chase faces active charges of robbery, assault, theft and other associated charges from a warrant issued in Montgomery County, Md., on March 11, 2015. He is currently in jail awaiting his first hearing the same day as his debut in court as an accused killer.
Sanderson, who is accused of committing the murder of Melgar along with Chase, lives at 4645 West Frankfort Drive in Rockville, Md. Sanderson has yet to be charged with any other crimes at this time, but now his DNA will be collected and he could be matched to other activities in the future. For now, he will have to be content with simply first degree murder and his first time at bat in court will be on Aug. 14, 2015. For the time being he is held in the Montgomery County Jail.