A 17-year-old male suspect has been arrested in the killing of Zytina Mason-Brown, a 14-year-old girl who died in May 2025. Authorities allege the suspect was inside the Washington, D.C., apartment where Mason-Brown was fatally shot. The arrest brings a measure of relief to Mason-Brown's family, who had insisted for months that she did not die by accidental self-infliction.
Mason-Brown was killed on May 21, 2025, in an apartment at the Benning Courts Pentacle complex. Initial police reports characterized the shooting as an accident, suggesting Mason-Brown had accidentally shot herself while recording a social media video. Her family immediately rejected this explanation.
Mason-Brown, an eighth-grader who aspired to become a beautician and real estate agent, was reportedly in the apartment at the time of the incident. The family's persistent claims led to further investigation.
In August 2025, months after the shooting, the D.C. Office of the Chief Medical Examiner officially ruled Mason-Brown's death a homicide. "We knew that Zytina did not kill herself," her aunt, Dawna Cooke, told FOX5DC. "And I really want to thank the Metropolitan Police Department for fighting so hard to come to the conclusion and get the suspect in custody."
Mason-Brown's grandmother, Michelle Brown, expressed a similar sentiment. "I’m feeling — I don’t want to say happy because it’s not a joyous occasion, I just wish we didn’t have to go through this — but I’m feeling satisfied that D.C. police did apprehend the suspect," she told FOX5 DC. "And they did their job on this one."
Details regarding the identity of the 17-year-old suspect and their upcoming court proceedings have not been publicly released due to juvenile privacy laws. The arrest marks a significant development in a case that the victim's family has questioned since the initial ruling. The Fayson Firm of Professional Morticians also noted the family's disbelief in the initial accidental ruling.