Charging Documents: Man suspected of killing Canton resident left victim's wallet in getaway car
BALTIMORE -- A 23-year-old man has been arrested and charged for allegedly killing 60-year-old Victorino Malabayabas in 2022, the Baltimore Police Department said on Thursday.
Police said Antonio Bardney, who was already in custody at the Eastern Correctional Institute, has been extradited to the Central Booking Intake Facility and is charged with second-degree murder.
The arrest comes over a year after police initiated a search for a suspect who was seen fleeing the spot where Malabayabas was fatally assaulted in August 2022. The incident happened in the 600 block of South Kenwood Avenue, according to authorities.
Malabayabas was a devout Catholic who was a parishioner of St. Casimir.
Following his death, the church community wrapped the victim's family in support and continue to do so today, Father Dennis Grumsey said.
"Victor really could be described as one of the pillars of the church, he and his family," Grumsey said. "It was a shock to everyone, and everyone is still dealing with it in their way. It left a hole in the parish community."
Bardney was believed to have fled in a gold 2005 Buick LeSabre with Virginia temporary tags, according to charging documents. The driver's side of the car had a missing front headlight assembly and damage to that area.
Charging documents show that homicide detectives received a tip on August 24, 2022, from an anonymous caller that the Buick LeSabre was parked in the 1300 block of Ramblewood Road.
Homicide detectives found the vehicle and monitored its movements with a GPS tracker authorized by a judicial warrant, per court records.
While the vehicle was being monitored, it was moved at least three times within the 5700 block of Leith Walk, according to charging documents.
The following month, after detectives noticed that the vehicle was no longer being moved around, they had it towed to the Baltimore City Crime Lab Bay to be processed for evidence. Inside of it, they found the wallet of Malabayabas, which contained his Maryland State ID card, receipts, and two debit cards, per court records.
Five months later, on Feb. 14, 2023, detectives learned that the State of Maryland DNA Database had a Combined DNA Index System (CODIS) match "between a Maryland individual charged with a qualifying crime and a forensic specimen recovered from the victim's right rear pants pocket," according to charging documents.
That individual was Bardney.
Investigators learned that Bardney lived on Leith Walk. At the time, Bardney was being detained in jail in connection to a separate incident, per court records.
Detectives obtained authorization to collect his DNA via oral swabs through a search and seizure warrant. DNA analysts were able to confirm that Bardney's DNA matched the sample recovered from the right pocket of Malabayabas, according to the charging documents.
"A match between Antonio Bardney and the inferred genotype is 9.09 billion times more probable than a coincidental match to an unrelated individual in the same demographic population," the charging documents state.
Court records show that probabilistic genotyping was used to determine the match.
Malabayabas was a husband, father, grandfather and friend to many more.
"My prayers go to his family and friends, and I just hope he's at peace now," said parishoner, Jackie Fields.