Another Capitol Hill Attack Leaves Police Seeking a Connection

D.C. police are trying to find out if two late-night attacks in the same Capitol Hill neighborhood are connected.

In both cases, the men were robbed and beaten on North Carolina Avenue SE, near Eastern Market.

The latest incident happened around 2:30 a.m. Tuesday. The victim, who was attacked by two men, was able to walk home and call police.

"It makes me feel very unsafe," said local resident Victoria Rodrigues. "[It's] really insane in this area, the amount of crime that's been happening lately... You assume when you move here that it's a nice area. You can see the Capitol building."

The latest incident occurred just a few blocks from where 29-year-old Thomas Maslin was nearly beaten to death a few weeks ago. Maslin was found on a porch of a house after lying outside for nearly eight hours.

Maslin remains in the hospital following two brain surgeries. His wife is documenting his recovery on a blog, Love for the Maslins.

Since the attacks, police increased patrols in the area. Police are also investigating to see if the same men are responsible for both attacks.

Matthew Marriott, 27, told News4's Jackie Bensen he was assaulted and robbed of a cellphone in the fall in broad daylight near Eastern Market. Now he wonders if he should have pushed the matter further when police explained the attack as a gang initiation.

Ward 6 Councilmember Tommy Wells says police have stepped up patrols and will continue to do so.

"Even with police presence, we're not going to be able to cover every block," Wells said. "And I don't know how determined these criminals are, but... we're going to have to be extremely vigilant on our own until they're caught."

A neighhorhood resident told NBC4's Shomari Stone that a police officer stopped by her home to let her know about the latest attack.

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