Anne Arundel County State’s Attorney Anne Colt Leitess announced that Inari Molina, 27, was sentenced to 60 years of active incarceration for one count of first degree murder in the death of Brian Gifford.
The defendant entered a guilty plea on May 19, 2022.
“The victim, Mr. Gifford, was sitting in his truck when the defendant opened his truck door apparently to look for valuables inside. When she encountered Mr. Giffords, instead of abandoning her plan to commit a theft, she chose to viciously attack him and stabbed him 36 times. This was an unprovoked attack as the individuals were neither acquaintances or knew each other,” said State’s Attorney Anne Colt Leitess.
“Mr. Gifford’s life was senselessly taken from him leaving a huge hole in the lives of those who loved him dearly. We hope the sentence imposed today will provide some level of comfort to his family.”
Assistant State’s Attorneys Glen Neubauer and Rashad Wright prosecuted this case on behalf of the citizens of Anne Arundel County.
On July 27, 2019, a citizen contacted Anne Arundel County Police Department to report a foul odor coming from a white pick-up truck in a large parking lot located in the 800 block of Aquahart Road in Glen Burnie. Police officers responded and located a body inside the truck which was later identified as Brian Gifford. There, they collected evidence including a fixed blade knife that was inside of the vehicle.
During the investigation, detectives obtained video footage from a local restaurant which showed the victim alive on July 16, 2019. Police learned that Mr. Gifford would sometimes sleep in his car in close proximity to where his jobsites were.
During an area canvass, detectives spoke to two citizens who described an encounter they had with a person they described as a tall, thin individual wearing a wig and a jogging suit with white striping on the side. This individual, later identified as Inari Molina, approached them and asked them for money and cigarettes as they were waiting for transportation to their jobs in the same general area where the victim’s truck was found.
On July 17, 2019, video surveillance showed an individual who resembled the defendant wearing the same jacket with the white striped sleeves walking across the parking lot toward the victim’s white pick-up truck at 4:33 a.m. and opening the door.
On July 31, 2019, detectives located and interviewed the defendant. During the interview, the detectives observed that the defendant had a large cut on her finger which had healed badly. Ms. Molina had a history of similar incidents involving thefts from automobiles. A search warrant was issued and a DNA standard for Molina was collected. The forensic evidence collected from the vehicle was compared to the DNA standard for the defendant. A blood stain found inside the victim’s vehicle matched the DNA standard for Inari Molina. A report from the Office of the Chief Medical Examiner ruled Mr. Gifford’s manner of death a homicide from multiple stab wounds.
The Honorable Mark Crooks presided over the case.
