Man receives life sentence for rape and murder of his Suitland mother in 1979

Last year, the Charles County Sheriff's Office announced that county resident Andre Taylor, now 63, was arrested on charges including rape and murder in connection with the death of Belk. Belk was found on Metropolitan Church Road near Route 227 after her murder 45 years ago.

Vickie Lynn Belk

Sheriff of Charles County

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He was found guilty by a jury in July after a nine-day trial that lasted just two hours.

“This case happened more than four decades ago, and yet investigators and forensic experts never gave up,” Charles County Sheriff Troy Berry said previously.

“They were constantly looking for opportunities to identify a suspect. This arrest is a reminder of our determination to do everything we can to solve crimes. We never give up. We never stop seeking justice for victims.”

On Saturday, August 24, the Charles County Sheriff's Office announced that Taylor was sentenced to life in prison.

Assistant District Attorney John Stackhouse told the judge that the incident caused “generational trauma because it lasted 45 years.”

“(Her) son grew up without a mother. Her parents had to bury their daughter. Her parents lay on their deathbed and did not know who killed their daughter. Her grandchildren never had the opportunity to meet their grandmother.

“Yet I have never seen a family with so much courage, determination and grace in this whole case.”

In August 1979, Belk was reported missing to the Prince George's County Police Department by her then-boyfriend after they separated at the Department of Agriculture, where they both worked at the time.

She never returned to her apartment in Suitland.

The day after her disappearance, a local teenager riding his bike noticed a body on the ground in a wooded area near the intersection of Metropolitan Church Road and Route 227. It was later determined that it was Belk.

Belk had been shot and her body was disposed of. She was found with a gunshot wound to the right side of her head and was naked from the waist down.

The case remained unsolved for years, although detectives – some of whom have since retired from the sheriff's office – continued to work on the case, using new technology to advance the investigation while developing new information and leads.

In 2022, members of the Charles County Sheriff's Office Forensic Division received a tip about a new DNA match linking Belk to Taylor, and the investigation gained momentum.

According to investigators, detectives later found that Taylor was linked to an address on Bryans Road, less than four miles from where Belk's body was found, but he managed to elude officers for years.

He was eventually tracked down in Washington, DC.

Taylor was arrested last year and later returned to Maryland to face the charges.

Andre Taylor

Sheriff of Charles County

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