Judge Karen Howze ordered Ercell Overton held Wednesday pending a preliminary hearing in connection with the shooting death of 57-year-old taxi driver Solomon James Okoroh.
Tuesday morning, Okoroh suffered two gunshot wounds, one to each shoulder, and later died at Howard University Hospital.
Overton, 32, was arrested shortly after following a shootout with police.
According to charging documents in the case, Metropolitan Police officers were patrolling the Adams Morgan neighborhood early Tuesday morning as part of Operation Summer Ice, MPD’s summer crime initiative, when they heard a single gunshot. Seconds later, a Ford Explorer taxicab sped past the officers, at which time they heard another gunshot and saw a flash from inside the vehicle. The taxi, which was headed southbound in the 2300 block of Ontario Road NW, then crashed into another vehicle and a parking meter.
Documents say that as the police officers approached the crashed taxi, Overton jumped out of the vehicle, pointed a handgun at one of the officers, and then ran into the bushes of a nearby residence. Moments later, from behind a fence, Overton fired shots at police as they surrounded his location; the officers returned fire. Overton then kicked in a residential basement door and the officers surrounded the perimeter and called the K-9 Unit.
Arrest documents say Overton was apprehended “by means of a K-9 bite.”
Police recovered a .380 caliber handgun from inside the basement where they apprehended Overton; they also recovered one .380 shell casing from inside the taxicab and seven .380 casings from the vicinity of the home where the shootout occurred.
A preliminary hearing is scheduled for June 21.
Arrest documents are below.
