Maryland man found guilty of killing girlfriend, unborn baby in county's first-ever conviction of its kind
A Maryland man was found guilty in the murder of his girlfriend and her unborn baby, in what was the first time in Montgomery County history that a defendant was convicted of killing a viable, unborn child.
A jury on Friday convicted Torrey Moore, 33, on two counts of first-degree murder in the death of his pregnant girlfriend, Denise Middleton, and her unborn child.
Moore was also found guilty of two counts of the use of a handgun in the commission of a felony, one count of a crime of violence against a pregnant person and one count of illegal possession of a firearm, ABC 7 reported.
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Prosecutors showed surveillance footage of the last time Middleton, who was eight and a half months pregnant, was seen alive, according to Fox 5 DC. The video was taken on Oct. 9, 2022, from an elevator in Moore's apartment building, where the couple was seen together shortly before her death.
Investigators believe Moore shot Middleton, who was 26, seven times a short time later.
Middleton's body was found in Moore's apartment in an advanced stage of decomposition.
Moore faces a possible life sentence without the possibility of parole, with his sentencing hearing scheduled for March 28.
The double murder is linked to another crime which he was convicted of in May. The sentencing hearing for that case, where he killed a gas station employee and could be sentenced to life in prison, is scheduled for February 20.
On Dec. 8, 2022, Moore arrived at a Shell gas station store on the 11100 block of New Hampshire Avenue in Silver Spring, where surveillance footage shows him shooting and killing the clerk, Ayalew Wondimu, before fleeing the scene.
When Montgomery County Police showed up at Moore's apartment in the 11000 block of Oak Leaf Drive in Silver Spring the next day to serve an arrest warrant, they discovered Middleton's body.
After Middleton was killed, cell phone data showed Moore traveled the country for the next 26 days. His search engine history during that time included, "How long does it take for a dead body to smell?" and "How to move a dead body without being seen."