Man indicted on first-degree murder charge in South Shore Plaza shooting death

DEDHAM – A Norfolk County grand jury indicted a man Monday on a charge of first-degree murder for allegedly shooting another man in the head at South Shore Plaza in Braintree earlier this year.

Police say Julius Hammond-Desir, 19, of Maynard, shot Dijoun Beasley, 26, of Dorchester, on Jan. 22, in front of Beasley's girlfriend and her 3-year-old child inside the mall. He is also charged with carrying a loaded firearm without a license and carrying a firearm without a license.

Hammond-Desir has been held without bail since he was arraigned Feb. 16.

The grand jury also indicted Samantha Schwartz, 27, of Attleboro, on charges of accessory after the fact and carrying a firearm without a license in connection to the case. Schwartz was ordered held on $20,000 cash bail when she was arraigned in Quincy District Court on Jan. 28.

No court date has been set for the arraignments of Hammond-Desir or Schwartz, said David Traub, spokesman for the Norfolk County district attorney's office, in a news release.

Feb. 16, 2022: Man accused of South Shore Plaza shooting charged with murder, held without bail

In a report filed with the court, State Police said video surveillance shows Hammond-Desir and Beasley talking briefly near the entrance to Forever 21 just before 3 p.m. Saturday, Jan. 22. The video then shows Hammond-Desir lift his shirt and shoot Beasley in the head, authorities said.

In the police report filed for Schwartz's arrest, State Trooper Matthew Dunne said Schwartz told a friend and her mother that Beasley had pulled out a gun. Schwartz told her friend that the encounter started because Beasley thought Hammond-Desir was staring at him.

Assistant District Attorney Anne Yas said during Schwartz's arraignment that she drove Hammond-Desir to a Randolph apartment, where he hid, and that she contacted him while he was hiding. Dunne said in his report that Schwartz brought him food from a restaurant while he hid.

Hammond-Desir was wanted by police for nearly four weeks before his arrest in Dorchester by Braintree, Boston and State Police.

The January shooting was the third time in recent memory that shots were fired inside the mall. A 15-year-old bystander was hurt in a 2020 shooting, and in 2017 members of rival gangs happened to cross paths in Macy's shoe department. Gunshots were fired, but no one was hurt.

See our past coverage of this case

Feb. 16, 2022: Man accused of South Shore Plaza shooting charged with murder, held without bail

Feb. 4, 2022: South Shore Plaza and Braintree working on mall security agreement

Jan. 31, 2022: South Shore Plaza owner says mall getting a K-9 unit, more cameras in response to shooting

Jan. 31, 2022: Opinion: It was supposed to be a carefree shopping day. Until the shooting started.

Jan. 28, 2022: Prosecutor: Woman helped mall murder suspect hide; authorities name alleged shooter

Jan. 27, 2022: Woman held on $20,000 cash bail in South Shore Plaza fatal shooting; investigation ongoing

Jan. 26, 2022: 'South Shore Plaza needs to step up and step up big': Braintree mayor seeks increased security

Jan. 24, 2022: DA: 26-year-old man shot at South Shore Plaza has died, police still looking for shooter

Jan. 22, 2022: 'It has to stop': Braintree mayor Charles Kokoros calls mall shooting 'unacceptable'

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Patriot Ledger reporter Mary Whitfill and former reporter Joe Difazio contributed to this report. Reach reporter Wheeler Cowperthwaite at wcowperthwaite@patriotledger.com.

This article originally appeared on The Patriot Ledger: Maynard man indicted on murder charge in South Shore Plaza killing