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From stalking to a fatal stabbing: Montgomery Co. man convicted of murder

A Silver Spring, Maryland, man faces up to 40 years in prison after he was convicted of second-degree murder in Montgomery County Circuit court.

Prosecutors said Denzel Kasaka, 23, spent the day of June 14, 2020, following his ex-girlfriend and her new boyfriend, Jose Augusto Ruiz, 20, tracking them first on social media and then in real life.

That same day, Kasaka sent a text saying in part, “It’s not gonna end well.”

At around 10 p.m. that night, Kasaka who had followed the couple to Ruiz’s home in Silver Spring, confronted him, and the two got into a fistfight.

At some point, Kasaka went back to his car and got a knife. Prosecutors said he stabbed Ruiz, who later died at an area hospital.

Kasaka is scheduled for sentencing on Feb. 18, 2022.

Takoma Park’s new stop-sign cameras begin issuing warnings

Drivers who fail to stop at designated intersections in Takoma Park, Maryland, will receive warnings from the city's automated stop-sign camera program starting Monday, with fines beginning Sept. 16. The City of Takoma Park said the four-year program, which began earlier this year, targets school zones and "aims to enhance pedestrian safety as part of the City's commitment to Maryland's Zero Deaths campaign and Montgomery County's Vision Zero initiative."
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