Man arrested for murder of Anne Arundel County couple on his 61st birthday, police say

A 61-year-old man was arrested hours after a married couple was found shot to death inside a home in a quiet, tight-knit community in Anne Arundel County on Sunday, according to police chief Amal Awad.

Anthony Louis Reyes, from Nottingham, Maryland, was taken into custody on his birthday following a police pursuit, and assaulting an officer, according to police. He will be charged with first-degree murder.

Officers responded around 2 p.m. to the 1700 block of Twickenham Road in Pasadena, Maryland, where 56-year-old William Hayes and 54-year-old Jenna Hayes were found dead of gunshot wounds. They own a home improvement construction business inside their home, according to police.

Police said an adult granddaughter lived in the home but was not there during the shooting.

"It's just terribly horrific, especially right before the holiday season," Awad said. "This is a very close-knit community. You can see it by how they have already started decorating for the holidays."

Police believe the shooting was targeted, but the motive is under investigation.

"We do believe this was an isolated and targeted incident," said Lt. A.J. Gardiner, with the Anne Arundel County Police Department. "This isn't something that was random. We do believe this person was here for a purpose." 

Pursuit and assault

Police said Reyes was identified after someone from inside the home called 911. Officers located Reyes's car in the 1600 block of Bluestone Street in Hanover before attempting a traffic stop.

Police said Reyes led officers on about a seven-minute pursuit along Interstate-97 to the Quarterfield Road exit.

After an initial traffic stop in Hanover, Lt. Gardiner said an officer suffered minor injuries during a brief struggle with Reyes, who was taken to a local hospital.

"When it comes to the 911 call, that was fantastic," Gardiner said. "It's unfortunate we weren't here in time to prevent it, but the information that was relayed really led us to a position where we could start isolation other things."

Relationship between the victims and suspect

Police said Reyes was known to the Hayes family, who owned a business inside their home.

Lt. Gardiner said it appears Reyes had both a personal and a business relationship with the family.

"This was a person who was known to the family, both personally and in business," Lt. Gardiner said. "I don't know of any issues."

Toni Arnold says her daughter lived with the victims but wasn't home at the time of the shooting. She says the Hayeses were her daughter's grandparents.

"I just can't believe somebody viciously murdered them in broad daylight," Arnold said. "He didn't deserve that. He took care of his wife; he took care of my daughter. It just breaks my heart."

Tight-knit community

Anne Arundel County Police Chief Amal Awad said Long Point Community is quiet, with little to no crime, with waterfront homes, family homes, and cottages.

"We are very surprised to get a call like this here," Awal said. "We know we have family members who are grieving tonight, and this entire community is grieving, and they are going to have to journey forward trying to make sense of what happened."

The police chief said it was evident that the neighbors were close based on the holiday decorations around the community. She said it was important to let the neighbors know that an arrest had been made.

"We talked about how this community is a close-knit community, and you can see they celebrate holidays and such together," Awad said. "This is a community where neighbors become family. It was important for us to be able to share with them that we do have this suspect in custody, and they can rest a bit."