Man charged in connection with October murder in Hybla Valley

An arrest had been made in the October 2019 murder of a 19-year-old man in the Hybla Valley area.

Melvin Palma-Flores faces federal charges related to the killing of Xyqwavius Brown in the Meadow Woods Apartments. Palma-Flores is alleged to have shot Brown in retaliation for a drug-related robbery and subsequent taunting by Brown the previous day, according to an affidavit in the case.

A Fairfax County Police officer, working for a DEA task force, said in the affidavit that Brown and two unnamed individuals stole marijuana from Palma-Flores on October 25 — the day prior to Brown’s murder. An unnamed witness said that Flores pulled a semi-automatic handgun out during the robbery but did not use it.

Afterward Brown allegedly taunted Flores on Snapchat for not using the gun to defend himself, the officer testified. Less than an hour before he was shot, Brown is said to have sent a Snapchat video to Palma-Flores mocking him and saying he would not retaliate.

Roughly 30 minutes later, Palma-Flores allegedly shot Brown. He would be taken to a local hospital before dying from his wounds.

“[Brown’s] grandmother advised law enforcement that [Brown] was home with her leading up to the homicide,” the officer says in the affidavit. “Brown’s] grandmother stated that [Brown] received a call on his cell phone and walked out of his residence. [Brown] never returned.”

Detectives were able to determine that Palma-Flores’s cell phone was near the location of the murder around the time of the shooting, according to the affidavit. Multiple witnesses also told police that Palma-Flores went to the Meadow Woods Apartments with his girlfriend and another man just prior to the murder.

Palma-Flores faces charges of possession of a firearm in furtherance of drug trafficking resulting in death. A detention hearing for him is set for Monday at the federal courthouse in Alexandria.

Palma-Flores’s age was not immediately available. Fairfax County General District Court records indicate he lived in the 22303 zip code as of late last year.

News of the arrest was first reported by NBC Washington’s Scott McFarland.