Tsihnik Cavallero | Homicide Watch DC

Tsihnik Cavallero Indicted for Murder of Marcus Minor

Amelia Rufer — Mon, 10 Nov 2014 16:09:04 -0500

Tsihnik Cavallero pleaded innocent Monday to first-degree murder while armed and a weapons violation in the January death of 21-year-old Marcus Minor.

Cavallero was originally charged with second-degree murder while armed, but a grand jury indicted him on the more serious first-degree murder charge.

Charging documents say that Minor and Cavallero both sold marijuana and hung out on Stevens Road Southeast, where the shooting happened. Two witnesses reported seeing Cavallero and Minor arguing moments before the shooting.

Before he was shot, Minor had pulled out a gun but then returned it to his waistband. The two had been arguing, charging documents state.

"You pulled a gun out, you should've used it," Cavarello said as he stood over Minor's body in the late afternoon on January 24. A witness told police it saw Cavallero shoot Minor multiple times.

Moments later, police would find Minor's body lying on the sidewalk in the 1300 block of Stevens Road Southeast. Minor was shot six times, including one shot to the back of his head.

According to the witness account, Cavarello and another individual known as "Ace" were seen fist fighting earlier that day. Cavarello's friend broke up the fight, at which point Cavarello got in his car and drove away.

Then "Ace" told Minor to get a gun and Minor took off running down Wade Road.

The witness grew anxious about a possible altercation when it noticed Cavarello hiding behind a house several minutes later. Minor came walking back down Stevens Road, at which point Cavarello approached him.

The argument ensued. On January 24, Minor would put his gun away only to die shortly after.

Cavarello will appear before Judge Jennifer Anderson for a status hearing on Feb. 2, 2015.

A copy of the indictment is below:

Substantial Probability Found in Marcus Minor Murder, Tsihnik Cavallero To Remain Held

Megan Arellano — Tue, 25 Feb 2014 16:43:08 -0500

A judge found substantial probability Tuesday in the case against Tsihnik Cavallero, who is accused of fatally shooting 21-year-old Marcus Minor on Jan. 24.

Minor was found shot with six gunshot wounds, including one to the back of the head, in the 1300 block of Stevens Road Southeast at approximately 2:42 p.m. in the afternoon. He was pronounced dead on the scene.

Charging documents say that Minor and Cavallero both sold marijuana and hung out on Stevens Road Southeast. Two witnesses reported seeing Cavallero and Minor arguing moments before the shooting.

According to the documents, both men left the scene when Cavallero addressed Minor after a fist fight between Cavallero and another man known as "Ace." Documents say that Cavallero asked something to the effect of, "You want to fight me?" Minor responded, "I don't fight, you know how I go ... I'll be back."

Metropolitan Police Detective Gabriel Truby testified Monday that Cavallero and Minor were gone for less than 30 minutes before they returned to the scene and engaged in a fatal confrontation.

One witness said Minor was the first to display a gun, Truby said, but he did not point the gun at Cavallero. That witness saw the fight from an "across the street distance", Truby testified.

Truby clarified Monday that a third witness in the affidavit "did not see the shooting, per se." Instead, that witness saw an individual wearing a mask fleeing the scene of the shooting.

David Benowitz, Cavallero's defense attorney, conceded that there was probable cause connecting Cavallero to the shooting. But he argued that the higher threshold of substantial probability was not met because details between some of the witnesses did not match.

Judge Jennifer Anderson found substantial probability and decided to hold Cavallero, noting "the nature and seriousness" of the crime. "Just the facts of it," Anderson said. "The decedent pulled a gun and put it away."

The case is scheduled for a status hearing on May 6 at 9:30 a.m.

Cavallero Held in Connection with Shooting Death of Marcus Minor

Kristian Hernandez — Wed, 12 Feb 2014 19:43:04 -0500

Judge Karen Howze ordered Tshinik Cavallero held Wednesday pending a preliminary hearing in connection with the shooting death of 21-year-old Marcus Minor. Cavallero was arrested Monday on suspicion of second-degree murder while armed.

On January 24, police found Minor in the middle of the afternoon on the sidewalk of the 1300 block of Stevens Road Southeast with six gunshot wounds, including one to the back of the head. He was declared dead at the scene.

Charging documents state that both Minor and Cavallero sold marijuana and hung out on Stevens Road Southeast. Multiple witnesses reported seeing Cavallero and Minor arguing moments before the shooting.

On the day of the murder, Minor arrived in the 1300 block of Stevens Road Southeast at about 2 p.m., the witness said. Crime scene technicians later recovered a large Ziploc bag containing marijuana from Minor’s pants, documents say.

Another witness reported that it saw Cavallero and another man known as "Ace" in a fist fight on January 24. The witness later saw Cavallero and Minor get into an argument. When Cavallero said words to the effect of, "You want to fight me?," Minor told him, "I don't fight, you know how I go... I'll be back," according to the witness. Minor walked away and Cavallero got into his car and drove away, the witness told police.

A third witness recalled Minor yelling, "Get em Ace!" while Cavallero and "Ace" fought. That witness watched Cavallero leave in his car, then return to the scene of the altercation.

The same witness stated Minor and Cavallero started arguing when they met. The witness then saw Minor briefly pull out a gun from his waistband but put it back without firing. Moments later, Cavallero pulled out his own gun and fired multiple times at Minor.

"You pulled a gun out, you should have used it," Cavallero yelled at Minor, charging documents say. He then took Minor's gun from his waistband and ran away, the witness told police.

According to the witness, Cavallero "hangs with the older guys" on the north side of Stevens Road and Minor "hung with the younger guys" on the south side of Stevens Road. The witness also told police that it has purchased marijuana from Cavallero.

Documents say that Cavallero admitted to being in a fist fight with Minor on the day of the murder, but he said that he left the scene before Minor was shot and did not return.

A preliminary hearing is scheduled for 9:30 a.m. on Feb. 25.

Charging documents are below.

Tshinik Cavallero Charging Docs (PDF)Tshinik Cavallero Charging Docs (Text)

Tsihnik Cavallero Arrested in Shooting Death of Marcus Minor

Megan Arellano — Mon, 10 Feb 2014 18:30:38 -0500

A 28-year-old Southeast DC man was arrested Monday in connection with the shooting death of Marcus Minor last month. The man, identified by police as Tsihnik Cavallero, is suspected of second-degree murder while armed.

On January 24, Minor was found shot in the 1300 block of Stevens Road Southeast at approximately 2:42 p.m. in the afternoon. He was pronounced dead at the scene.

A press release from MPD is below.

February 10, 2014

Arrest Made in Homicide: 1300 Block of Stevens Road, Southeast

(Washington, DC) – Detectives from the Metropolitan Police Department’s Homicide Branch have announced that an arrest has been made in the homicide which occurred in the 1300 block of Stevens Road, Southeast.

On Friday, January 24, 2014, at approximately 2:42 pm, members from the Seventh District responded to a call for a report of sounds of gunshots in the 1300 block of Stevens Road, Southeast. Upon arrival, they located an adult male suffering from apparent gunshot wounds. DC Fire and Emergency Medical Services personnel responded to the scene and determined that there were no signs consistent with life. The decedent remained on the scene and was later transported to the Office of the Chief Medical Examiner for the District of Columbia, where an autopsy was performed and the manner of death was ruled to be homicide.
The decedent has been identified as 21-year-old Marcus Minor of Northeast, Washington, DC.

On February 10, 2014, at approximately 9:14 am, 28-year-old Tsihnik Cavallero of Southeast, Washington, DC, was arrested by members of the Capital Area Regional Fugitive Task Force pursuant to a DC Superior Court arrest warrant charging him with Second Degree Murder While Armed in connection with the homicide of Marcus Minor.

**Correction: The original version of this post misstated where Minor was declared dead. Minor was determined to have no signs of life at the scene.