A Landover man caught breaking into a Suitland home early Thursday morning allegedly shot a District of Columbia cab driver to death only hours earlier, Prince George’s County law enforcement sources said.
Christian E. Brooks, 25, was charged with first-degree murder, accused of pulling the cab driver from his taxi and shooting him to death.
Police believe they found the murder weapon in Brooks’ possession when they caught him outside a home on the 3700 block of Summer Street, sources told The Examiner. Police are awaiting the outcome of ballistic tests.
Police would not confirm the name of the taxi driver pending notification of his family, but co-workers at District Cab Association said he was Tekola Bekele, 54, of Silver Spring.
Bekele, co-workers said, had worked for the cab company since 1982. He owned his cab and came in weekly to pay the insurance. They called him “Shorty” and he called everyone “my man,” because, one fellow employee said, he couldn’t remember people’s names.
Bekele’s cab didn’t have a radio. He operated independently of dispatch, working Dupont Circle and Georgetown for fares. His cab didn’t have a Plexiglas shield separating him from passengers. It didn’t have a safe either, a supervisor said.
Police said they received a call around 11:20 p.m. Wednesday from a citizen reporting that a cab driver had just been pulled from his car and shot on the 700 block of Avanti Place.
When police arrived they found the cab missing and Bekele dead.
The cab was later found on the 3600 block of Maywood Lane in Suitland, about six miles from where it was stolen.
Brooks’ alleged attempted burglary was less than a mile from the cab, police said. He was caught standing in the front yard of the Suitland home. A woman who lives in the home had called police, telling them that someone had broken the door and was trying to get in.
Police said they’re not certain whether cash or any other items were taken from the taxi.
