Washington

Grandmother on 3-Year-Old Child's Killer: “I Hope He Burns in Hell”

"We all got a scar that will never heal, that we have to live with the rest of our lives," said Knijah's grandmother Brenda Bibb

A 3-year-old girl was fatally shot after a man opened fire on a Maryland house following an altercation over clothing, police said.

The little girl's killer is still at large, and police are urging the suspect, 25-year-old Davon Antwan Wallace, to turn himself in. Family members say they want justice for the death of young Knijah Amore Bibb.

"I hope he burns in hell because he took an innocent child's life," the girl's grandmother Brenda Bibb said. "She was so loving. Everybody loved her."

Police say Wallace was dating someone who lives at a home in the 6900 block of Forest Terrace in Landover, Maryland. While at the home Sunday, Wallace accused an acquaintance of wearing some of his clothing, then left. 

Wallace later returned and fired gunshots into the home, said Prince George’s County Police. News4's Darcy Spencer counted at least six bullet holes on the exterior of the home.

Knijah, of Northwest D.C., was hit by the gunfire while she was in an upstairs bedroom of the home, where she had been visiting her cousins. She was transported to a hospital, where she died.

"We all got a scar that will never heal, that we have to live with the rest of our lives," Bibb said. "My daughter had three boys and she tried so hard for a girl, and she got one and he just took her away from her." 

Wallace was identified as a suspect late Sunday. Police said the "intended target" of the gunfire, a boy in his late teens, had not been in the house at the time of the shooting.

"I feel terrible; I feel helpless," said Knijah's mother Shadon Bibb. 

Wallace, of the 7000 block of E. Kilmer Street in Landover, has been charged with first-degree murder after a preliminary investigation.

Police said anyone harboring the suspect will also face charges.

The little girl's death stunned the neighborhood and even the police who continue to investigate, Spencer reported.

The investigators had not yet slept or gone home by Monday afternoon, citing a "sense of moral outrage" over the little girl's death, authorities said.

In 2007, 21 surveillance cameras were installed in the county to help deter crime -- including one right across the street from the house where Knijah was shot and killed.

"Unfortunately that camera is not operational so there was no useful video from that camera," Lt. William Alexander with Prince George's County Police said. 

Police maintain they did not need the surveillance video to help identify Wallace, though the cameras haven't been working for at least two years.

Robert Boddie, who lives next door to the scene of the crime, said that he and his two young sons had just moved into the neighborhood a few weeks ago.

"These are my next-door neighbors. It's not like it's down the street or down the block. I really don't feel like it's OK to feel OK right now," Boddie said.

He said his father was watching his children Sunday afternoon when his neighbor's home was sprayed with bullets.

"He heard the gunshots, grabbed my children, threw themselves to the floor and kind of crawled to the back of the house," Boddie said. 

Tonisia Carter, who lives across the street, said the neighborhood had changed for the better over time.

"It had a horrible reputation, just the surrounding area, a lot of violence. But over the years, it has calmed down a whole lot," she said.

Anyone with information that could lead to his arrest should call Crime Solvers at 866-411-TIPS or 301-772-4925.

Contact Us