Officer fatally shot in apartment in 1995, MD cops say. Now boyfriend arrested
Nearly three decades after a police officer from the nation’s capital was found dead inside her apartment, her boyfriend has been arrested, Maryland police say.
Amir Jalil Ali, 62, of Laurel, was arrested Tuesday, Aug. 5, in connection with the 1995 death of Denna Fredericka Campbell, 24, the Montgomery County Police Department said in a news release.
“This arrest closes one of the longest standing cold cases for our department,” Chief Marc Yamada of the Montgomery County Department of Police said at an Aug. 6 news conference livestreamed on Facebook. “While this arrest won’t erase the pain of losing Denna, we hope that it does bring some resolution and sense of peace to everyone involved.”
Officer found fatally shot in apartment
On Sept. 16, 1995, Campbell was found dead inside the White Oak apartment she shared with her boyfriend, Ali, “who (at the time) went by the name Kenneth Burnell Wonsom,” police said.
Campbell, who “had been shot five times,” worked as an officer with the D.C. Metropolitan Police Department for four years and was “assigned to the 7th District,” police said.
Campbell’s department-issued handgun was not found at her apartment and remains missing, according to police.
Ali told police detectives he left the apartment at about 3 a.m. for a trip to the store and “and returned to find Campbell unresponsive,” police said.
Just after 5 a.m., Ali called 911 to say their apartment had been burglarized, “and his girlfriend had been shot,” police said.
Ali was initially charged in Campbell’s death in 1995; however, “the charges were dropped two months later,” police said.
During the news conference, State’s Attorney John McCarthy said he “can’t speak to what happened” in regards to why the charges were dropped in 1995, adding that there is “a lot more detail” in the new charging documents.
‘Energetic and full of life’
Campbell’s death shook the community.
“I haven’t been right all day,” Carolyn Francisco, an assistant manager of a nearby pharmacy who grew to know Campbell told The Washington Post in 1995. “Every time I look, I see her face, her smile.”
Campbell was a rising star with the Metropolitan Police Department, “who had already proved herself to be a hero in the community she served,” Executive Assistant Chief Andre Wright said at the news conference.
“In 1993 she selflessly pulled four victims out of a burning van on Pennsylvania Avenue,” Wright said. “Her actions that day earned her commendations from MPD leaders and praise from her community.”
Her colleagues “remembered her as being energetic and full of life,” Wright said.
Boyfriend arrested decades later
Detectives continued the investigation, examining evidence and reviewing details from Campbell’s case, police said.
The investigation led to a warrant being issued for Ali’s arrest Sunday, Aug. 3, police said.
Ali has been charged with first-degree murder, Yamada said.
“We recognize that today’s news doesn’t bring officer Campbell back to her family, her community or our department, but we hope this news can bring some form of closure to all of those who have carried the burden of this tragedy for over three decades,” Wright said.
Detective Paula Hamill with Montgomery County police said she told Campbell’s father about the arrest in his daughter’s case, and “the only words that he could get out were: ‘Thank God.’”
Ali is being held, pending a bonding hearing, police said.
White Oak is about a 30-mile drive southwest from Baltimore.
This story was originally published August 6, 2025 at 2:00 PM with the headline "Officer fatally shot in apartment in 1995, MD cops say. Now boyfriend arrested."
