A 34-year-old man from Silver Spring, Maryland, has been sentenced to multiple life terms for two unrelated murders, including the killing of his pregnant girlfriend and their unborn son.
Torrey Damien Moore received three consecutive life sentences along with an additional 80 years in prison, which will run concurrently, the Montgomery County State’s Attorney’s Office announced. The sentence stems from the 2022 murders of Denise Middleton and their unborn child, Ezekiel. Middleton was eight and a half months pregnant at the time of her death.
Moore was found guilty by a jury in November 2024 for the October 9, 2022, shooting of Middleton. He was convicted of crimes including the use of a firearm in a felony, illegal firearm possession, and a violent crime against a pregnant individual. This marked the first conviction in Montgomery County for the murder of a viable fetus.
Middleton’s body, discovered in a state of decomposition in Moore’s bedroom on December 9, 2022, had been shot seven times. The discovery came one day after Moore’s arrest in connection with the murder of 61-year-old gas station clerk Ayalew Wondimu.
In that separate case, Moore was convicted in May 2024 of first-degree murder, use of a firearm in a felony, and illegal gun possession. The incident occurred during a dispute over purchases at a Shell gas station in White Oak. Surveillance footage showed Moore throwing drink bottles at Wondimu, who responded by swinging a metal pole. Moore then pulled a gun and shot Wondimu, later firing more shots after following him behind the counter.
After Wondimu’s murder, prosecutors say Moore fled and spent nearly a month traveling around the country. During that time, he reportedly searched online for information about decomposing bodies and how to move one undetected. He eventually returned to the apartment and continued living there with Middleton’s remains until his arrest.
