Man breaks into home, killing woman he’s accused of harassing decades ago, DC cops say
A 71-year-old woman from Washington, D.C., died after police said a man who had been accused of harassing her decades prior broke into her home and attacked her. But it wasn’t the first — or even the second — time police said they had responded to the victim’s house that same morning.
Sylvia Matthews was found by police Friday, Dec. 3, at the bottom of her home’s stairs at 11:20 a.m. as police responded to a report of a burglary at the home, according to a court affidavit. Matthews was found with severe head trauma and covered in blood.
She was transported to the Washington Hospital Center where she was found to be unconscious, unresponsive and unable to breathe on her own, court records show. She later was pronounced deceased, NBC Washington reported.
Police said they found suspect Michael Garrett, 66, in the home’s basement with blood on his clothing. He was arrested immediately, the affidavit stated, and it was the third time police had been at the residence that morning.
According to court records, police were called to the same location at 7:32 a.m., and then again at 8:44 a.m. The first call was due to a report of a burglary, records show, and police said Garrett broke both the windows on the victim’s vehicle and a glass door at the back of the home. During the second call just over an hour later, police responded when Garrett was on the phone with the victim, court records show.
“Officers attempted to talk to the defendant on the phone and advised him to leave the victim alone, but the defendant would not speak to them,” court records state. During the third visit — which took place just under 3 hours after the second call — police said they found Matthews with life threatening injuries.
Garrett was charged with assault with intent to kill, according to a statement from the D.C Metropolitan Police Department, which deemed the offense as domestic in nature.
McClatchy News reached out to the police department and is awaiting response.
Police said a blood trail was found leading from Matthews’ body to where Garrett was located in the basement. A black cane covered in blood was found near the woman’s body, court records show, and Garrett said he “just got” to the home to discover Matthews already injured before his arrest.
Garrett wasn’t a stranger to Matthews, and her family told NBC Washington that her death could have been prevented. While they didn’t know Garrett personally, her family said they had heard of him, telling NBC Washington they thought Garrett met Matthews in a reformatory pharmacy years prior.
“Oh my gosh, we’re devastated,” one of Matthew’s family members told NBC Washington. “It’s like the system failed us.”
Court records show that Garrett had been accused of breaking into Matthew’s house more than two decades ago in 1999, when police said he climbed through Matthew’s bathroom window and proceeded to chase her out of her home and down the road.
Garrett was then charged with stalking, assault with a dangerous weapon, destruction of property, and first degree and second degree burglary. He was sentenced in Dec. 1999 on the burglary and destruction of property of charges.
On Jan 25, 2021, Garrett’s counsel submitted a “Motion for Compassionate Release,” stating that he was no longer a threat to society. It was initially denied, according to the affidavit, but his remaining sentence was suspended in March 2021, as long as Garrett agreed to quarantine for five days.
According to the affidavit, Garrett continued to contact Matthews, with police reports filed on Oct. 7 and Oct. 22. Garrett was accused of holding a corkscrew to Matthew’s neck and stating, “I’m going to kill you.”
According to court records, Garrett is currently being held without bond.
This story was originally published December 7, 2021 at 3:53 PM with the headline "Man breaks into home, killing woman he’s accused of harassing decades ago, DC cops say."
