08/12/2023
Wow. Let’s give it up for the state of Maryland and all of our first responders
Thank you, thank you, thank you
We leave the light 💡 on for all of you every night
Stewart Orlando Ray (APPREHENDED)
August 9, 2023 -Updated Press Release
On August 6, 2023 at approximately 9:00 pm. Deputies from the Talbot County Sheriff’s Office responded to the University of Maryland Shore Regional Health at Easton in reference to a shooting victim. Patrol deputies and criminal investigators learned that the victim of the shooting, Jahari De’Mon Cooper, 39 of Talbot County, Maryland, was driving a motor vehicle near the community of Unionville when the suspect, Stewart Orlando Ray, 36 of Clinton, MD passed the victim’s vehicle on Unionville Road and pulled off. As the victim passed the now stopped suspect vehicle, Ray shot at the victim multiple times striking the victim and his vehicle. The victim drove himself to the emergency room for treatment.
Ray fled the area in his motor vehicle where he failed to stop for a stop sign at the intersection of Unionville Road and Bruffs Island Road, left the roadway and struck several parked vehicles, disabling his vehicle. Ray’s vehicle has been recovered by police. Ray fled the area on foot into a large wooded area in rural Talbot County.
A 24-hour manhunt ensued in Talbot County that covered several thousand acres of woods and marsh. The search for Ray continued all night during the severe storms of August 7 and 8th. Investigation revealed Ray specifically targeted the victim over a dispute with a common girlfriend. An arrest warrant has been obtained charging Ray with Attempted Murder, First Degree Assault, Reckless Endangerment and Use of a Firearm – Felony/Violent Crime.
During the very early morning hours of August 8, 2023, criminal investigators uncovered information that Ray may have slipped through the search area during the severe thunderstorms and made his way back to the Washington DC metro area. Talbot County Sheriff’s investigators made contact with the United States Marshals, Capitol Area Regional Fugitive Task Force (CARTIF) and provided their investigators with information as to the possible location of the suspect.
According to a press release from the Alexandria Police Department.
“On Tuesday, August 8, 2023 at approximately 12:46 pm the Alexandria Police Department responded to a shooting in the 3600 Block of Richmond Highway. Upon arriving, officers learned that the U.S. Marshals, Capitol Area Regional Fugitive Task Force (CARTIF) located a wanted fugitive in the Potomac Yard shopping center. While CARTIF attempted to apprehend the suspect, he was shot. The suspect was transported to the hospital with life-threatening injuries.”
Stewart Orlando Ray, 36 of Clinton, Prince Georges County, MD, has been identified as the suspect that CARTIF arrested and is currently hospitalized. Ray is currently on probation for a 2009 conviction of attempted second degree murder.
Detectives from the Alexandria Police Department are investigating the shooting and have been communicating with Talbot County Sheriff’s Office investigators.
“I am incredibly grateful to the countless state, local and federal law enforcement officers on the Eastern Shore, CARTIF, and the Alexandria Police Department who willingly put themselves in harm's way to make our community safer during this manhunt. During these strange times, as the Maryland Legislature continues to make policing more difficult, it is inspiring to know that there are still selfless men and women who are willing to risk their lives daily for all of us, knowing that their every action will be scrutinized by people who have risked nothing and have never known real danger. I can’t thank these public servants enough for their sacrifice and heroism.” Said Sheriff Gamble.
Assisting agencies include the Maryland State Police, MSP Aviation, Maryland Natural Resources Police, Easton Police Department, Queen Anne’s County Sheriff’s Office, Dorchester County Sheriff’s Office, Talbot County Department of Emergency Services, Easton Volunteer Fire Department, CARTIF, Alexandria Police Department, and a special thank you to the Ridgley Volunteer Fire Department, Canteen 4 for keeping all of our police officers hydrated and fed during the manhunt in Talbot County.
The Talbot County Sheriff’s Office can be contacted at 410-822-1020, by email at [email protected], on Facebook at Talbot County Sheriff’s Office, or on our website at talbotsheriff.org
