Maryland father, friend, and 2 kidnapped daughters found dead in suspected murder-suicide

SMITHSBURG, Md. (TCD) -- A father and his female friend, both former police officers, were found dead in a Ford Edge on Thursday with his two kidnapped girls in a suspected murder-suicide.

According to WHTM-TV, 6-year-old Aaminah and 7-year-old Giana Vicosa had been missing since Nov. 14. Court documents obtained by WHTM reveal that Robert Vicosa, a former Baltimore County police officer and their father, abducted the children.

Police searched for the missing girls, as Vicosa reportedly went on a crime spree with a former coworker from the Baltimore County Police Department, Tia Bynum. They reportedly kidnapped and robbed someone in Cockeysville, and his daughters were reportedly "present during the robbery," Baltimore County Police said.

Police deemed Vicosa and Bynum armed and dangerous. According to Baltimore County Police, they possessed "at least one handgun and possibly several semi-automatic rifles."

According to the Maryland State Police, on Thursday just before 2:30 p.m., Pennsylvania State Police alerted the Maryland State Police about a car that matched the description of Vicosa’s vehicle — a Ford Edge headed south toward the Maryland line. The same car was reportedly "involved in multiple felonies including child abduction and carjacking," Maryland State Police said.

Pennsylvania State Police tried to initiate a traffic stop, and according to the Maryland State Police, the Ford Edge swerved off the road, "struck a culvert and came to rest in a grassy area off of Route 418/Ringgold Road in Smithsburg, Maryland."

The Maryland State Police said troopers surrounded the Ford Edge and tried to convince Vicosa and Bynum to exit the car, but they received no response. Troopers from the Special Tactical Assault Team Element (S.T.A.T.E.) tried to get into the vehicle, and according to the Maryland State Police, they fired two 40mm sponge rounds to break open the front passenger side window. They then saw the "driver was incapacitated with apparent gunshot wounds."

Troopers reportedly made their way inside the car to check on the daughters in the back seat. The Maryland State Police Department said Vicosa, Bynum, and the two daughters all suffered from apparent gunshot wounds. Vicosa, Bynum, and one of the daughters were pronounced dead at the scene. The second daughter was brought to a medical center, where she later succumbed to her injuries, the Maryland State Police said. All were brought to the Office of the Chief Medical Examiner in Baltimore for autopsy. According to the Maryland State Police, investigators recovered an assault rifle and other guns in the vehicle.

According to WHTM-TV, Vicosa worked for the Baltimore County Police Department for 17 years before losing his job in August. He had reportedly been demoted from sergeant to officer and in 2019 was accused of improper conduct with female officers. Bynum reportedly worked for the department for 14 years.

The motive of the shooting is unknown.

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