Dieneba Sekou Traore’s teenage son was brutally beaten and robbed on video in Columbia, Maryland.
Traore went to the police, but they didn’t act fast enough. On October 12, 2024, a few days after her son was assaulted, gunfire erupted outside a shopping center in the 8800 block of Center Park Drive.
Two young men were found shot in their legs. A witness reported seeing the shooter hop into the back passenger seat of a white SUV.
Police traced Traore’s phone and the white Mercedes SUV to the crime site, and she was charged with attempted murder, claiming she acted as a vigilante.
However, during her trial, both victims testified that a man wearing a Louis Vuitton hat was the actual shooter, not a woman.
Despite no DNA evidence linking her to firearms and no gunshot residue found in her vehicle, on June 26th, 2025, Traore was convicted of two counts of attempted murder, two counts of first-degree assault, two counts of using a firearm in the commission of a violent crime, and several conspiracy charges..
On September 19th, 2025, Traore was sentenced to twenty years in prison.
After her release, she will be on probation for five years.
DOB:
September 1977Conviction(s):
- Attempted murder (2 counts)
- First-degree assault (2 counts)
- Using a firearm in the commission of a violent crime (2 counts)
- Conspiracy
Date of crime:
October 12, 2024Location(s):
Columbia, MDDate of arrest:
December 16th, 2025Details:
Tried to kill some teens she thought robbed her son.Confirmed Victim(s):
- 2 unnamed teens
Method:
ShootingMotive(s):
RevengeSentence:
20 years in prisonCurrent whereabouts:
Maryland Correctional Institution for Women in Jessup, MDSources:
N/ALast Updated on 03/23/2026
