Arraignment Held for Four Charged in Connection with a September 2023 Murder in a Southwest Apartment Building

           WASHINGTON – Keyshawn Lavender, 23, Deandre Sams, 28, Raymond Mathis, 37, of Washington, D.C., and Deandre Christian, 30, of Fort Washington, MD, were arraigned in Superior Court today on a superseding indictment charging Lavender, Sams, and Mathis with conspiracy to commit robbery, first degree felony murder while armed, and related charges for the September 5, 2023 murder of 32-year-old Matthew Miller. Christian was arraigned on an assault with intent to kill charge for shooting from the balcony of an apartment building.

           The superseding indictment was announced by United States Attorney Matthew M. Graves and Chief Pamela Smith of the Metropolitan Police Department. All four defendants were arraigned before Superior Court Judge Anthony Epstein.

          According to the superseding indictment, Lavender, Mathis, and Sams conspired to rob and shoot Matthew Miller inside an apartment at 222 M Street, Southwest, Washington, D.C. Christian is charged for an alleged retaliatory shooting immediately after the murder.

           The defendants entered pleas of not guilty and remain held pending trial. Lavender, Sams, and Mathis are scheduled for trial on September 8, 2025; a trial date for Christian has not yet been set.

           In announcing the charge, U.S. Attorney Graves commended the work of those investigating the case from the Metropolitan Police Department (MPD) and the U.S. Attorney’s Office.  The case is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Sarah Prins.   

          An indictment is merely an allegation and all defendants are presumed innocent until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt in a court of law.