Murder on Lavender Lane
Amanda Raye Hartmann age 24, who was with Rangel at the time of his arrest, was also arrested and charged with Accessory After the Fact – First Degree Murder.
Rangel and Hartmann were transported to the St. Mary’s County Detention Center and incarcerated.
MECHANICSVILLE, MD. — Wanted for the murder of Cody Lacey on Lavender Lane in Mechanicsville, Md., early on Saturday morning, Alan Michael Rangel has been wanted on an open warrant since July 3, 2015 for failing to appear in Charles County, Md., District Court to face trial on concealing a deadly weapon and various traffic charges.
Rangel with an address of 21413 Lynn Drive in Lexington Park, was stopped on June 14, 2015 at 8:47 am by Maryland Trooper Coppedge for driving without a permit on Rt. 5 at Rt. 6.
But driving without a permit will be the least of his worries when the cops catch up with him after he, allegedly, with the help of two accomplices, murdered Cody Michael Lacey, of 42265 Allison Drive in Mechanicsville.
St. Mary’s Sheriff Tim Cameron reports the investigation into the murder of Cody Michael Lacey progressed on Saturday, detectives developed information regarding the suspect who fired the shots and two suspected accomplices.
On July 25, 2015, police say that detectives executed a search and seizure warrant on a home in St. Mary’s County. Both suspected accomplices, identified as Demetrius Jose Burks-Jeffrey, age 22, of Chaptico, and Wade Joshua Braithwaite, age 21, of Lexington Park, were located and placed under arrest. Items of evidence related to the investigation were recovered as well.
Burks-Jeffrey and Braithwaite were transported to the St. Mary’s County Sheriff’s Office and charged with Accessory After the Fact – First Degree Murder. Both have criminal records, as does the victim.
Lacey was the defendant in a domestic violence case in Calvert County on Oct. 3, 2014 and ordered to surrender his firearms and not abuse, harass, contact or go near the plaintiff.
Lacey was charged with assault and disorderly conduct on Sept. 28, 2013 by Deputy J. Hardesty. St. Mary’s States Attorney Richard Fritz put the charges on the Stet Docket on July 28, 2014 with no fine and no time in a deal with Lacey’s attorney, Patrick J. Devine of Upper Marlboro.
Rangel was charged with assault by Deputy John Davis on March 8, 2014 but St. Mary’s States Attorney Richard Fritz dropped the charge in District Court on April 24, 2014. Between the time of his arrest and being sprung, Rangel was a guest of the Hotel St. Mary’s, which just may be warming up a cell for him once again.
A second criminal charge of burglary placed by St. Mary’s Sheriff’s Deputy Timothy Shomper resulted in a plea deal on June 19, 2014 which netted Rangel 130 day in jail. A taxpayer-provided public defender, Eric Sullivan, made the deal with Fritz. Rangel was given credit for time served of 130 days.
A child custody case with Rangel as the defendant was held in St. Mary’s Circuit Court on Oct. 13, 2013.
Rangel was jailed on Oct. 8, 2013 on an assault charge which was put on the Stet Docket by States Attorney Fritz on Oct. 10, 2013. Repeated traffic charges involving failing to have a permit and driving while suspended were racked up by Rangel in recent years.
Charged with first-degree assault on June 6, 2012, Rangel entered a guilty plea in a plea deal with States Attorney Fritz on Oct. 26, 2012. Rangel was sentenced to 18 months in jail and granted work release.
Rangel was charged by Deputy T. Reese with first-degree assault on Dec. 27, 2011 and in a plea deal with States Attorney Fritz, entered a guilty on Feb. 21, 2012. The deal with Fritz resulted in a sentence of 180 days with 145 days suspended and credit for time served of 35 days. Victoria Kunkoski was the public defender, who doesn’t actually defend the public but instead defends criminals who prey on the public.
An indictment for first-degree assault from an incident which occurred on Jan. 13, 2012 ended when States Attorney Fritz dropped the charge on July 13, 2012.
Braithwaite, who lives at 46359 Columbus Drive #602 in Lexington Park, Md., was charged with accessory after the fact for murder in the first degree on a warrant on July 25, 2015 by Detective Melissa Green.
On June 19, 2015, Braithwaite was the subject of a request to a St. Mary’s District Court Judge to remain away from his home and not contact a victim who sought a Domestic Violence warrant. The order was denied when the victim failed to appear in court.
Braithwaite evidently is a local rooster as well with an active bench warrant out for him in a paternity and child support case, which can now be served in his jail cell, which was issued by a Judge for contempt in the paternity action. He had appeared in a preliminary hearing on May 15th.
A charge of assault against Braithwaite was brought by Crystal Biscoe on March 15, 2014 but the charges were dropped by St. Mary’s States Attorney Richard Fritz on June 3, 2014.
While locked up in the slammer on Sept. 4, 2012, Braithwaite was charged with assault on an inmate or jailer. He entered a guilty plea on March 19, 2013 which earned him 515 days in jail and he was given credit for 196 days of time served. The taxpayers of Maryland provided him with legal representation by two public defenders; Kevin R. Hill and Sarah Elkins.
Burks-Jeffrey resides in Longview Beach at 36772 Skyview Drive in Chaptico. He was charged with blasting loud music from his vehicle and driving without a permit (which is a common thread among the alleged suspects in this case) on July 20, 2013 by Deputy David Potter. In court on Feb. 21, 2014, he entered a guilty plea and was fined $44.50.
On May 19, 2012, Burks-Jeffrey was charged by Prince Georges Police Officers Starr, Brackett and Snoddy with multiple counts of dealing drugs, possession and distribution in a school zone in Prince Georges County, Md. In District Court on Aug. 16, 2012, Prince Georges County States Attorney Angela Alsobrooks dropped multiple counts and put three of them on the Stet Docket with no fine and no time. Burks-Jeffrey had been jailed on May 19, 2012 and released on June 11, 2012. As usual for alleged drug dealers, he was represented in court by a taxpayer-provided Public Defender – Anne Gold-Rand.
Anyone with information regarding Rangel’s whereabouts is asked to call Detective Melissa Hulse at 301.475.4200 x1996 or email at melissa.hulse@stmarysmd.com, or Criminal Investigations Division Supervisor Lieutenant Russ Trow at 301.481.7694. UPDATE 7-26-15:
Detectives have obtained an arrest warrant for ALAN MICHAEL RANGEL, 21, for the July 25th shooting on Lavender Lane in Mechanicsville, which resulted in the death of Cody Lacey.
The warrant charges RANGEL with First Degree Murder, Second Degree Murder, First Degree Assault, Reckless Endangerment, and Use of a Firearm in the Commission of a Felony/Crime of Violence.
RANGEL is African-American or Mexican, 5’09” in height, and weighs 202 pounds.
Anyone with information regarding Rangel’s whereabouts is asked to call Detective Melissa Hulse at 301.475.4200 x1996 or email at melissa.hulse@stmarysmd.com, or Criminal Investigations Division Supervisor Lieutenant Russ Trow at 301.481.7694.
Callers may also call CRIME SOLVERS at 301.475.3333 or TEXT a TIP to “TIP239” plus your message to “CRIMES” (274637). Calls to CRIME SOLVERS are NOT RECORDED and callers can remain ANONYMOUS. St. Mary’s County CRIME SOLVERS offers rewards of up to $1,000 for information about a crime that leads to an arrest or indictment.
Prior charges for stabbing on hiking path for pair were dropped by Fritz
Braithwaite and Rangel were charged with first degree assault for allegedly stabbing a young male in California, Md., in 2012.
According to the Maryland State Police a trooper saw a young man standing in the median of Three Notch Rd. in the area of McArthur Blvd. The man who told the trooper that he had been struck in the head with a blunt object and stabbed multiple times by some people while he was walking on a footpath at the back of San Souci Shopping Center. He was air lifted with life threatening injuries to Prince George’s Hospital Shock Trauma Unit.
Detectives identified two suspects, who were arrested five days later.
Eighteen year olds Wade Joshua Braithwaite and Alan Michael Rangel were taken into custody and the charges were dropped by States Attorney Fritz on July 13, 2012.
MECHANICSVILLE, MD. --- Wanted for the murder of Cody Lacey on Lavender Lane in Mechanicsville, Md., early on Saturday morning, Alan Michael Rangel has been wanted on an open warrant since July 3, 2015 for failing to appear in Charles County, Md., District Court to face trial on concealing a deadly weapon and various traffic charges.
