Maryland man convicted of first-degree murder in killing of Greenbelt teacher

A Maryland man was ascertained guilty of first-degree murder on Tuesday for the gruesome July killing of Greenbelt trainer Mariame Toure Sylla Related stories University Park man indicted in gruesome killing of Greenbelt educator Man charged with murder in missing Maryland professor s death Greenbelt school aims to keep the memory of slain coach Madame Sylla alive The verdict for Harold Landon III came down after several days worth of testimony that included prosecutors presenting graphic photos of Sylla s remains and a phone recording in which Landon spoke about the murder While it remains unknown why Landon targeted Sylla investigators previously declared there is no indication Landon and Sylla had known each other Jailhouse audio presented by the prosecution gang caught Landon saying he had fully let the savage inside of me out awake and out of the cage News broadcasted of the court proceedings The beloved third grade tutor who also went by the name Madame Sylla by her students at the Dora Kennedy French Immersion School went missing July She was last seen going for one of her regular walks through Schrom Hills Park Questions surrounding Sylla s whereabouts were promptly raised after she failed to show up for an evening prayer that day Fatima Toure Sylla s sister described the third grade trainer to News as a quiet woman who loved working with children She had never done something bad she commented At the time of Sylla s disappearance the Greenbelt district came together holding a vigil and passing out flyers to spread the word One pupil recalled to News how Sylla had inevitably been kind to him regularly offering a greeting I could see that she definitely meant it when she stated hi back to me he explained Zeroing in on Landon From the time Sylla went missing it would be weeks before details surfaced in early September of Sylla s killing or of charges filed against Landon for the murder The matter began shifting into a murder inquiry on Aug after police were alerted to human remains being determined on rocks near a pond in the block of Old Alexandria Ferry Road in Clinton Maryland The remains were decapitated at the collar with extremities amputated at both knees and shoulders An autopsy later proven traces of Sylla s blood were consistent with those uncovered on the remains Landon came into the picture after a witness relayed to investigators that a man in a white pickup had been spotted dumping at the Clinton pond charging documents revealed at the time The same witness snapped an image of the man that Landon later substantiated was him Police were also able to pinpoint Landon at the scene through surveillance footage as well as phone records that pinged Landon to the park that Sylla visited and the area where her remains were identified A search of Landon s home had also turned up power tools that matched cuts unveiled on the body Incidentally Landon had already been in police custody the day Sylla s remains were uncovered He was being held on an unrelated domestic violence charge WTOP s John Domen and Scott Gelman contributed to this overview Source