A white University of Maryland student charged with fatally stabbing a black student from Bowie State University on Saturday is being held without bond.
Sean Christopher Urbanski, 22, of Severna Park, Maryland, made his first appearance before a Prince George’s County judge Monday on murder and assault charges.
Although Judge Patricia E. Lewis denied Urbanski’s release from jail, she said his attorney could ask for a GPS monitoring device because he has no prior criminal record.
“We will agree to anything other than [removing] a no-bond [status],” Prince George’s County State’s Attorney Angela Alsobrooks said during a press conference after the bond hearing. “This is a person who stabbed a perfect stranger at a bus stop [and] is a very serious allegation. We believe that sort of individual is too dangerous to be out.”
According to court documents, the Bowie student, Richard Collins III, stood at a bus stop at 3:30 a.m. Saturday on the Maryland campus with two friends.
All three heard Urbanski scream from across the street and he then approached them.
“Step left, step left if you know what’s best for you,” Urbanski said to Collins. He replied, “no.”
Documents state Urbanski stabbed Collins in the chest and police found Urbanski sitting on a bench about 50 feet away from the bus stop. Police recovered a knife from Urbanski’s right pocket, police said.
Urbanski will be charged with first- and second-degree murder and first-degree assault.
During a press conference Sunday at the University of Maryland police station, officials said Urbanski may belong to a racist Facebook group. The FBI office in Baltimore will assist in the investigation.
Collins, who was recently commissioned as a second lieutenant in the Army, was scheduled to graduate Tuesday from Bowie State with a bachelor’s degree in business administration.
Alsobrooks said it’s too early to determine whether this constitutes as a hate crime. Indications are Urbanski and Collins didn’t know each other, she said.
“This is an investigation we cannot afford to get wrong,” she said. “We will take our time and make sure it is done well.”
Prince George’s NAACP President Bob Ross expressed concern about a white supremacist group possibly being housed at the University of Maryland, but nevertheless asked for the community’s patience.
“The University of Maryland is part of the community, not separate from the community — this is a community problem,” he said. “We ask the community to be patient … to see if this is, in fact, a hate crime or not. It’s very painful. I’m in good spirits that if we all work together in this, we can get it right.”
A candlelight vigil will be held Monday in honor of Collins at the Bowie campus at 7 p.m.