The trial of Darnell Sterling, who is accused of murdering his Kenyan girlfriend Olga Ooro in Washington, DC in 2020 began on September 13th.
D.C. Superior Court Judge Maribeth Raffinan told jurors that the trial is expected to last two-and-a-half to three weeks, Keith Alexander of the The Washington Post reports.
Sterling, 57, was charged with second-degree murder and contempt for allegedly murdering Ooro, 34, on July 17th, 2020, on the 300 block of Massachusetts Avenue, NW.
A video camera captured Ooro, her boyfriend and her seven-year-old son walking into an elevator in the lobby of Ooro’s apartment building in Northwest D.C after midnight on July 16th, 2020. It was the last time she was seen and her body was never recovered.
Court documents revealed Sterling’s criminal history, which involved domestic violence against Ooro, citing several stay-away orders as well as an incident in which he physically assaulted her.
Federal prosecutors are hoping to convince jurors that Sterling killed Ooro after returning to her apartment that morning even though they have no one who claims to have seen the crime, no murder weapon was found, no clear crime scene was established and authorities have not recovered her body.
“The government has charged this missing person’s case as a homicide. But there is no evidence that an actual homicide occurred. They have no body. No crime scene. Not even a sign there was an altercation,” Howard McEachern, Sterling’s defense attorney told the jury during opening statements.
Prosecutors told jurors that although they have no clear crime scene, they managed to find a spot of blood on Ooro’s apartment wall.
Assistant US Attorney Kristian Hinson told the jury that the blood was identified as belonging to a female offspring of Ooro’s parents. Ooro has three other sisters, but Hinson said the sisters plan to testify that they had never been in Ooro’s apartment.
Prosecutors will also base their case on the fact that Sterling was arrested and charged after allegedly assaulting Ooro less than a week before she went missing.
As a condition for being released from secure detention, a judge ordered Sterling to stay away from Ooro and agree to show up at his next hearing, which was scheduled for two days after Ooro’s disappearance.
“He did not stay away from Olga,” Hinson said.
Prosecutors are also relying on CCTV footage they recovered from Ooro’s apartment building and across the city and various highways.
They believe Sterling killed Ooro in her apartment before wrapping her body in a blanket, enveloped it in a plastic bag and placed it on a dolly handcart. He then wheeled her body from the elevator to his vehicle, drove to Ocean City, Maryland, where he dumped her body, either off the Bay Bridge, or somewhere between the bridge and Ocean City.
Prosecutors told the jurors that video footage showed Sterling coming and going from Maryland into D.C. and to Ooro’s apartment multiple times spanning several days. The jury heard that when police later questioned Sterling about his whereabouts, he told the officers he spent the entire time in Ocean City.
Police learned of Ooro’s disappearance two days later after her son was found wandering the second floor of their apartment building and told a neighbor that he was looking for his mother.
We need to hook up a smart…
We need to hook up a smart computer to this murderer’s brain and figure out where the body is hidden! Most likely in the Potomac river, or something!!! Women should be smarter before engaging with sweet smooth talking criminals! Your life is worth more than a green card!!! Do your homework, thoroughly!
Ladies,a man that’s a…
Ladies,a man that’s a walking stereotype;violent/abusive,family neglect, long criminal rap sheet will not change. Choose wisely.
Ladies, ladies , ladies…I…
Ladies, ladies , ladies…I might sound like a know-know, but the kind of wazungus who colonized us for decades are not the same us these red-necks you meet around here. Having a relationship with a human being with a white skin doesn’t give you the prestige you expect. The difference between our colonizers and the red-necks here is that, the former were British soldiers officers who were rewarded by Queen Elizabeth after fighting the 1st and the 2nd world wars. Most of the were livetenants, captains, majors, generals who were honored as Lords, eg Lord Delamere, Lord Cole etc. They were given huge tracts of land extending as much as the eyes could see, assisted financially to develop those farms in keeping beef and daily cattle, growing wheat, barley, pyrethrum, coffee, tea, sisal, and mining diamond, gold, copper, soda ash, diatomite, etc which were later shipped out to Britain without paying us a dime. Contrary to the British wazungus, most American wazungus are just a walking zombies, having messed up their lives well before they joined middle schools. More than ninety six percent of movies you watch on your screens are real events and stories that happened to their compatriots at one time. Substance abuse in America is not a hidden secrets. Use of marijuana, heroin, drugs is real. Every time they get me mad at my place of work am sent to a drug clinic where they take samples of urine, mafi, blood, saliva, sweat etc, in an effort to check whether my temper tantrums were as a result of bangi. Our sister, plus the other one from Minnesota, were victims of these maniacs who are monsters dressed like human beings. I have several of them looking at me right now at my place of work, though college graduates, and they are just waiting to find a victim. I think certain species of Americans have a cultured traits to rejoice in doing something that have never been done before or by anybody else. With the advance of technology and the emergence of social media platforms like facebook, Instagram, Claiglist, dating sites, most women and especially from the African continent have found out more than they could have bargained for. And it all boils down to these makaratasi stuff. The innocence and submissiveness in our African women become easy targets of these rednecks, most of whom have never married or had any known responsibilities. I don’t know how those of us who have seen the bright and the dark side of America and Americans can help to educate or orientate new comers from Jamhuri, not only to Kenyan women but also to men, since there is too much stuff to learn about the American culture.
MjuAji are You out Your mind…
MjuAji are You out Your mind. This is a Whole book You’re laying Before us. Can’t you Just summarize it??
Come on, PPpian shit. Dont…
Come on, PPpian shit. Dont read anything you find to be a book. I dont make it known that I personally dont read your nonsensical posts. I find Mjuaji comments to be one of the most matured and educative at mwakilishi especially old school Kenyan politics, told in a a perfect Swahili expressions. And mjuaji is cool, and never and uses language that make anybody snap. Grow ip man.
@Mjuaji there is some…
@Mjuaji there is some serious evil happening in America I agree. Take care of yourself. Some of these people have nothing to lose. So much mental illness to go around. This is a hurting country…just like your motherland.
The name Darnell means Black…
The name Darnell means Black criminal. So I ardently Advice all Women from Africa to Stay away from such Negroes..
Watoto wetu wakike…
Watoto wetu wakike watamalizwa na foreigners! Where are our boys?
Our “boys” are no angels…
Our “boys” are no angels either. We have our own Kenyan-born, Dallas TX serial killer Billy Chemirmir serving a life sentence.
Ours are drunk ?
Ours are drunk ?