Maryland registered sex offender suspected of killing parolee arrested in West Virginia

CHEVY CHASE, Maryland (AP) — A registered sex offender wanted in connection with the death of a Maryland parolee whose body was found in the man’s Chevy Chase apartment was arrested Saturday in West Virginia, authorities said.

Emanuel Edward Sewell is suspected of killing 33-year-old Davis Martinez, Montgomery County police said in a statement.

Sewell, 54, was traveling on Interstate 64 near Hurricane, West Virginia, when officers from the U.S. Marshals Service Fugitive Task Force conducted a traffic stop and arrested him, police said.

Martinez’s body was discovered Friday when he went to examine Sewell, who was released from prison in 2021, they said.

It was not immediately known whether Sewell had an attorney who could comment on his behalf. Montgomery County police did not immediately respond to an email message from The Associated Press.

After Martinez failed to return to work, officers went to Sewell’s apartment and found his body there, according to police. Martinez suffered several unspecified injuries and his death was ruled a homicide, according to the police statement.

Martinez worked for the Maryland Department of Public Safety and Correctional Services for six years.

Governor Wes Moore ordered Maryland’s flag to fly at half-staff until Martinez’s funeral.

“Agent Martinez served with distinction and our state is safer because of him,” Moore said in a statement. “Our entire state mourns his loss, along with those he loved.”

Sewell was not home when officers arrived. A warrant for second-degree murder was issued for Sewell, who was believed to have Martinez’s badge, police said.

According to court records, Sewell was sentenced in Montgomery County in 1997 to 20 years in prison for a first-degree sex offense, 10 years for armed robbery and five years for burglary. Police say Sewell is a registered sex offender.