AG identifies officers involved in fatal shooting of well-known Baltimore arabber
The Independent Investigations Division (IID) of the Maryland State Attorney General's Office (AG) has released the names of the officers and the man involved in Tuesday night's fatal shooting in Baltimore City's Upton neighborhood.
Officials confirmed that Bilal "BJ" Yusuf-Muhammad Abdullah Jr., 36, was the man shot and killed by Baltimore City police on Tuesday, June 17, just before 7:30 pm.
The State Attorney General's Office said the Baltimore City Department (BPD) officers involved in the shooting have been identified as: Detective Devin Yancy, an 8-year veteran of the department; Detective Omar Rodriguez, a 6-year veteran of the department, both assigned to the Group Violence Unit; and Officer Ashely Negron, a 7-year veteran of the department.
Abdullah allegedly shot a veteran police officer in the foot, according to a preliminary report from the AG's Office.
Both the officer and Abdullah were taken to the shock trauma.
However, Abdullah, who was shot in the exchange of gunfire with police, was pronounced dead at the hospital.
The officer shot, underwent surgery, and is now recovering, according to authorities.
Attorney General's preliminary report
The preliminary investigation from the investigation division of the state Attorney General's office revealed that a BPD officer in an unmarked cruiser was in the area of Pennsylvania Avenue and Laurens Street when the officer saw Abdullah allegedly wearing a crossbody bag on his back. The officer believed Abdullah had a firearm and attempted to speak with him.
One officer then allegedly exited the unmarked cruiser and approached Abdullah on foot.
Abdullah began walking away, and the officer followed, according to the AG's report.
As the officer followed, the man allegedly shifted the bag from back to front and ran away.
A second officer exited the cruiser to help the first officer, according to the AG's preliminary report.
A third officer, who was posted at the intersection in a separate marked cruiser, also got out of her vehicle.
Police said that the first officer grabbed Abdullah, and a gunshot was fired, which prompted the officers to take cover.
"A man ran from officers, and a brief truffle ensued," Baltimore Police Commissioner Richard Worley said Tuesday night after the shooting. "At some point, the male broke away, multiple officers returned fire, striking the man."
A firearm was recovered and secured by an officer, according to police.
Tuesday night, Worley also said that a crowd at the scene interfered with officers as they attempted to provide immediate aid to the man.
Fraternal Order of Police response
The Baltimore City Fraternal Order of Police Lodge #3 (FOP #3) issued a press release on the social media site 'X' on Thursday in response to the officer-involved shooting.
The release from the lodge states that after being approached by police, the suspect chose to escalate the situation.
"The citizens of Baltimore need to decide whether they want law and order or chaos," wrote FOP #3 president Mark Mancuso.
West Baltimore community reaction
On Thursday night, the West Baltimore community held a vigil in honor of Abdullah.
Many neighbors and family members were tight-lipped but were visibly upset about his death.
"They are trying to make it seem like he is just this bad guy—no, he isn't, you see how many people are out here who love him," said a relative who goes by the name of 'Peezzy'.
On Friday afternoon, two separate memorials continued to grow in Abdullah's honor— both at the scene of the shooting and in the neighborhood where the vigil was held.
A memorial was dedicated to Bilal "BJ" Abdullah Jr, a well-known arabber shot and killed by Baltimore police, on Tuesday, June 17, 2025.
Janay Reece
Abdullah was a popular arabber, who sold produce on a horse-drawn cart in the city, according to community members.
"When we all stopped arabbing, BJ kept going. He kept it going," said Marqueatia "Weedy" Watters, a close friend of BJ. "He kept the name going. Like, he kept it going."
Tony, known as "the Melon Man" or the "Fruit Man", said he worked as an arabber with Abdullah's family.
"All my life, I worked for his father, BJ's father is Bilal Sr., a brother, and an uncle. So, you know he had plenty of horses," Tony said. "I can tell you, he will be missed."
What is an arabber?
Arabbing has a long history in Baltimore as a source of fresh produce in food deserts across the city.
An arabber is a street vendor who sells fruits and vegetables from a horse-drawn cart. They used to be common in cities along the U.S. East Coast.
However, arabbers are working to stay active on the streets of Baltimore.
Holden Warren is the co-founder of Stable Baltimore alongside Levar Mullen, an organization that Warren and Mullen dedicated to healing and horse culture.
Warren explained to WJZ that they were working with Abdullah to bring arabber's back in a new and sustainable way.
"We've been training a new round of arabbers and we talked about bringing BJ back this summer. As we began to roll out new parts of our program," Warren said. "We're going to include an app and let them take EBT and things like that to help, sort of create more income streams for the arrabbers."
Body-camera footage to be released
Baltimore City NAACP responded to the officer-involved shooting on Facebook, confirming the Baltimore Police Department "... has reached out to the Baltimore City NAACP to arrange a private viewing of the body-worn camera footage once it has been prepared. We intend to review this footage with the seriousness and urgency this moment demands."
The West Baltimore community also held a peaceful march and rally at 6:00 p.m. Friday near Pennsylvania and W. North Avenues.
At the same time, the Baltimore City Police Accountability Board held an emergency meeting from 6:00p-8:00p.
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