Photo by Miki J.

Photo by Miki J.

Homicide detectives are investigating the shooting death of a transgender woman near the Montgomery Village shopping center yesterday evening.

Police said that 21-year-old Zella Ziona was shot in the head around 5:49 p.m in an alley that separates the Montgomery Village Plaza and the Montgomery Village Crossing shopping centers.

“This is a horrific crime and a tragedy for those who knew Zella,” said Chief J. Thomas Manger stated. “As with all homicides in Montgomery County, we have detectives working around the clock to thoroughly and completely investigate this murder.”

Police originally identified Ziona as a man named DeAndre Smith in a press release; they corrected the report today after speaking to friends and family.

The Washington Post reports that a nearby employee had seen five or six teenagers head into the alley and get into an argument.

“They walked into the alley, then they started arguing with each other, and after two minutes I heard the shots,” said the employee. He said he did not know what the argument was about.

“I was terrified,” he said.

The employee said he heard four or five shots and the group — including the gunman, who he said ran east out of the alley — scattered.

People have posted tributes to Ziona online and at the scene of the crime.

Filed Under: crime, homicide, montgomery village,