Police still on the hunt for man accused of shooting mother of 3

WICOMICO COUNTY, Md. – The Wicomico County Sheriff’s Office is on the hunt for 32-year-old Dequan Maurice Bratten, who allegedly shot a mother of 3 in a domestic incident, Saturday.

It happened around 4:20 in the afternoon and Captain Richard Wiersberg said initially, officials believed Bratten may have fled to the North Salisbury area.

“We did find some information that made us believe that he might be near Walmart, and we checked the area, and it turns out he wasn’t there,” he said.

Captain Wiersburg told WMDT within 24 hours, he himself received 12 tips, that’s not including the numerous others that were sent to the department from concerned community members looking to help.

“He’s been accused of a heinous crime, and we want to make sure he’s off the streets to make sure everyone else in the community is safe,” Captain Wiersberg said. “We’ve been very proud to see as much community action. We’ve gotten phone calls coming in, text messages and emails through crime solvers, trying to help us locate him.”

While an online case search only shows minor traffic violations, because of the nature of the crime, Captain Wiersberg sent a strong message to the public to not engage if you see Bratten and instead call 911.

“Please do not approach Dequan, just call the Sheriff’s Office or where you may be, the local jurisdiction where you believe you saw this individual,” Captain Wiersberg said. “Give the information and law enforcement will try to show up and verify and try to make sure the person you saw is the person we’re looking for.”