The 68-year-old man died on Thanksgiving, the department said, citing his wife.
Born in New York, who grew up in North Carolina, Moss led the department from 1999 to 2003.
“Moss died while watching football and sitting on his recliner,” Sandy Moss said in a Facebook post posted by CNN affiliate WJLA.
“He called my name and I came running, but it was too late. His body was shutting down,” his wife wrote. “Giving a first warning like this seems so difficult. Right now, I can’t think much of a plan I need to celebrate this man: my best friend since 1982. He means so many people, I’m at a loss… my God Charles.”
The killing shook the Beltway.
October 2002 was a month of terror for the Beltway as young Muhammad I. Lee Boyd Malo went on a killing spree, randomly targeting people who were going about their daily lives.
His first victim was a 55-year-old man on October 2, 2002, in a supermarket parking lot in Wheaton, Maryland. This weekend it killed a 39-year-old landscaper while mowing his lawn. Rockwell; A part-time taxi driver who was pumping gasoline in Aspen Hill. a 34-year-old woman at the Silver Spring Post Office; a 25-year-old woman at a gas station in Kensington; And a 72-year-old man walks down Georgia Avenue in Washington, DC.
By the time they were arrested, Malo and Mohammed had killed 10 people and wounded three in sniper-style attacks in and around the country’s capital. Authorities later traced his crime spree back to a few months ago, linking him to a string of robberies, shootings and murders in the southwestern and southeastern United States.
The killers taunted investigators, leaving tarot cards, handwritten notes and, in one case, even calling the police.
Montgomery County police led the investigation, which also involved several state and federal agencies, and Moss was often the public face of the investigation, holding regular press conferences. At a press conference, hours before Muhammad and Malvo were arrested, the iconic moose delivered a message to the killers.
“You asked us to say, quote, ‘we caught the sniper like a duck in a trap’, quote final,” he said. “We understand that it is important for you to listen to us. However, we want you to know how difficult it has been to get what you want because you have only received notices, indirect messages and calls in other jurisdictions. What is the choice?
The manhunt ended in the early hours of October 24, 2002, when a Pennsylvania motorist spotted the snipers’ blue Chevrolet Caprice at a rest area in Frederick County, Maryland. Maryland State Troopers quietly descended on the area and blocked the rest of the stop’s entrances and exits so a SWAT team could arrest the couple, who were sleeping in the sedan.
The men faced charges and convictions for murder and other crimes in several states. Malo received several life sentences and remained in prison…