The St. Mary’s County Sheriff’s Office announced that 42-year-old Wayne Carroll Key Jr., of Great Mills, has been arrested in connection with the case.
LEXINGTON PARK, MD – Family and friends gathered to remember the mother and daughter of St. Mary’s County, who were found dead earlier this week.
On Thursday, the St. Mary’s County Sheriff’s Office announced that it has opened an investigation into the deaths of 37-year-old Martina Lynn Patterson and 6-year-old Lynesha Justice Greenwell, both Lexington Park. Their family said they had not heard from the pair since Sunday.
Officials said his murder was being investigated in the 46800 block of Rogers Drive in Lexington Park. Relatives of Patterson and Greenwell said the victims lived there.
It was also the place where the couple’s friends and family held a Thanksgiving evening.
Margaret Proctor, Patterson’s mother and Greenwell’s grandmother, said her family was deeply affected by the loss of loved ones.
“They are the cutest people in the world,” she said. “Martina can do anything for anyone. Take off her shirt for anyone.”
The proctor announced during the surveillance that St Mary’s Sheriff’s Office had called to inform him that he had made an arrest in the case.
WUSA9 later confirmed that Wayne Carroll, 42, of Great Mills, Jr., was detained in connection with the alleged murders of Patterson and Greenwell.
“I’m so glad he’s caught,” she said. “There’s going to be justice.”
Proctor said he was informed that Key had been arrested in the Charles County community of Nanjemoy.
The deputy had issued warrants for the earlier arrests, which included two counts of first-degree murder, two counts of second-degree murder, two counts of first-degree assault and two counts of second-degree assault.
The sheriff’s office also said that Key had prior warrants for issues related to theft, harassment and child support.
Patterson’s sister-in-law and best friend of more than 20 years, Lanelle Wald, said the family had previously reported the keys to the authorities for alleged incidents of domestic abuse.
“I would say that domestic violence needs to be taken seriously,” she said. “We have reached out to the police several times for help and no one has done anything.”
Maryland court records show that Key was a defendant in two separate domestic violence cases in St. Mary’s and Calvert counties over the past two years.
Wald said he couldn’t believe someone would take the life of a six-year-old.
“Linesha was only six years old,” she said. “She hadn’t lived that life yet and to take that child away from her family, it’s just cruel.”
Police have yet to reveal the manner of death of Patterson and Greenwell. Wald said he had not yet been told the cause of his death.
The family of Patterson and Greenwell have established gofundme account To pay for their burial expenses. The proctor said none of the victims had life insurance. You can read more about GoFundMe page here.