Prosecutors in Baltimore have charged a city mother who they say tried to get rid of key evidence tied to a Feb. 15 assault in Southwest Baltimore. Authorities identified the woman as Yolanda Wilkes and alleged she tossed a bloodstained yellow-and-black jacket, later pulling a projectile from it. Three juveniles have already been charged in the incident on the 800 block of W. Lombard Street, and police say two of them were on electronic monitoring at the time.
Charges Announced At March 12 Press Conference
Baltimore State’s Attorney Ivan J. Bates and Police Commissioner Richard Worley rolled out the charges at a March 12 news conference, where Bates warned that attempting to cover up a crime, especially when it involves the actions of a juvenile, only compounds the harm done and undermines the integrity of our justice system. As reported by FOX45, prosecutors say Wilkes is charged with accessory after the fact, destroying, altering, concealing, or removing evidence, and contributing to the delinquency of a minor.
Police Account Of What Happened On Lombard
According to the Baltimore Police Department, officers were called to the 800 block of W. Lombard Street in the early morning hours of Feb. 15 for reports of armed individuals trying to break into a home. The department says an officer approached a Kia at the scene, the vehicle reversed and hit a parked car and the officer, and the officer fired a single round as the car took off. Detectives later found the Kia unoccupied in the 100 block of S. Arlington Avenue and learned it had been reported stolen the previous day.
reported that two 14-year-old boys were identified and arrested through electronic monitoring, and that the driver, a 14-year-old girl, was later charged and released on electronic monitoring.
Alleged Cover-Up: Jacket Tossed, Projectile Handed Off
Wilkes told investigators she was awakened just after midnight when her daughter’s friend brought the teenager home, and that the girl showed up bleeding and said she had “messed up” and thought she “caught a body.” Wilkes said she threw her daughter’s yellow-and-black jacket into a dumpster behind a church near her house because she could not get the blood out, and that while doing laundry, she found what she described as a “fire projectile” in the coat and handed it to the girl’s father.
Officers say that on Feb. 18, they found mail with Wilkes’s name next to the dumpster, but saw signs that the jacket had already been removed and could not locate it. At Sinai Hospital, Wilkes reportedly told staff her daughter had fallen from a scooter, according to FOX45.
Legal Stakes And Probe Now Underway
The Baltimore Police Department’s Special Investigations Response Team is handling the investigation into the officer’s use of his firearm, and the department has activated its Public Release of Critical Incident Recordings Policy. Officials say the inquiry remains active while prosecutors and detectives continue to review evidence and recordings tied to the case…