Suspect has a history of violence
Suspect has criminal record for burglary in Delaware
Radee L. Prince, who
By sundown Wednesday, Prince, who has addresses in Elkton in Cecil County and Wilmington, Del., was the most wanted man in the region. Local, state and federal law enforcement agencies conducted a multistate manhunt before taking him into custody Wednesday evening.
Even before police say he opened fire Wednesday morning at a granite countertop maker in Edgewood, Prince, 37, was known to law enforcement officials. And he had been fired from another job earlier this year after allegedly striking one co-worker and threatening others, according to court records.
In February, Prince allegedly punched a co-worker in the face at a Pulaski Highway granite and marble shop where he worked, then returned multiple times to threaten others after being fired for the attack, according to one co-worker who sought a peace order
“He came back to our business justifying what he did was right because the other guy was saying some things that he did not like,” the employee wrote in the application, adding that Prince came back to the business three times after he was fired.
A fourth time, Prince allegedly “came to see me, cursed and yelled at me. … I felt very threatened because he is a big guy and very aggressive on me,” the employee wrote.
He said Prince did not touch him physically, but “I do not want to wait until he will, plus, he already punched a co-worker,” the co-worker wrote in the documents. “He can also do it to me.”
A Harford County district judge denied the order, saying the co-worker “could not meet the required burden of proof.”
Wilmington Police Chief Robert Tracy said Prince had a total of 42 arrests on his record in Delaware, including 15 felony convictions. His department would not provide details on those arrests.
According to court records, Prince pleaded guilty in Delaware in December 2003 to 15 counts of third-degree burglary and was sentenced to 25 years with all but two years suspended, court records show. He was ordered to pay $34,500 in restitution, the records show.
Prince also had run-ins with law enforcement in Maryland. In March 2015, he was pulled over in Cecil County for driving with his front headlight out, and “began getting extremely loud and aggressive,” according to court records.
Prince would not stop screaming, according to the statement of the sheriff’s deputy at the car stop, and his vehicle was searched. A black pistol was allegedly found beneath the center console, and he was charged with multiple handgun violations.
However, those charges were dropped by Cecil County prosecutors about three months later.
Interim Cecil County state’s attorney Steven Trostle declined to comment Wednesday on why the 2015 gun charges against Prince were dropped. He said he had “been made aware” of the 2015 case, but his office’s “primary focus” Wednesday was to “assist law enforcement and the Harford County state’s attorney’s office in any way that we can” in the current investigation.
Members of Prince’s family could not be reached for comment on Wednesday.
Cedric Brown said he’s lived near Prince in Elkton for the past three-and-a-half years. He said Prince lived with a woman.
The two men would sometimes shovel snow together, and Prince never appeared violent, Brown said.
“I only saw him smiling and laughing,” said Brown, 67. “I was shocked when they said it was him.”
June Rivera, 33, who lives next door to Prince, said Prince “just really wasn’t approachable.”
“Sometimes he got combative with neighbors,” Rivera said.
Rivera said he was shocked when police started swarming the area Wednesday morning. Then he saw on the news what had taken place.
“For him to do that so close to home is crazy,” Rivera said. “You wouldn’t think he had that in him.”
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