Prosecution Suggests ‘Catfishing’ Ploy in 2015 Murder Case

By Rohan Naval - March 28, 2024
Daily Stories | Homicides | Non-Fatal Shooting | Shooting |

On March 27, opening statements in a murder case suggested a possible “catfishing” ploy to track and trap a murder victim. Such schemes aim to entice gullible individuals into romantic relationships on social media sites then manipulate them.

Oscar Ramos, 34, is charged with first-degree murder while armed, two counts of possession of a firearm during a crime of violence, and assault with intent to kill while armed for his alleged involvement in the shooting of 50-year-old Pedro  Alvarado Melendez on May 28, 2015, on Interstate 295 North at Exit One, in Southwest DC. The incident left another individual suffering from non-life-threatening injuries. 

During his opening statement, a prosecutor accused Ramos of using a “phony Facebook account” as a catfish ploy to communicate with the Melendez. Ramos was allegedly “pretending to be a woman named Rosa Lopez” and that the Facebook account was closed “within a few hours” of the a murder.

The prosecutor said the bogus account was used for “finding the decedent, getting close enough to him, and murdering him.”

The woman, whose identify was allegedly stolen in the scam, testified when she discovered a Facebook account using her photo, she asked the company for an explanation.

Melendez’s son testified that he had seen his father using Facebook to look at “pictures of women and news articles.”

The prosecutor told the jury that Melendez dropped his son off at school and was heading to his workplace down Interstate 295 when a man fired at the vehicle killing Melendez.

It would be “the last day Pedro Melendez would know,” the prosecutor said displaying a photo of the victim and of Melendez’s former brother-in-law who was injured in the incident. Melendez and his wife were divorced at the time of the shooting.

On May 31, 2015, Maryland authorities found a car that had been set on fire alongside a highway. A license plate identified Ramos as the owner.  

Defense attorney Camille Wagner attacked the prosecution’s case, describing it as “speculation and guesswork.” She said the prosecution is asking the jury to “jump to conclusions. [However] Mr. Oscar Ramos is innocent.”

Wagner said the jury is “not going to see” significant evidence related to firearms, DNA testing, and cell site data. She also questioned the credibility of prosecution witnesses who she says are gang members and have “every motive to lie.” Earlier, DC Superior Court Judge Maribeth Raffinan, who is hearing the case, granted a motion that prohibited the prosecution from specifically mentioning the defendant’s alleged involvement in a gang.

The trial is slated to continue on March 28.