Popeyes fatal stabbing suspect identified by police as 30-year-old Ricoh McClain

Investigators believe the man is still in the Washington, D.C. area.

November 12, 2019, 3:35 PM

The suspect believed to be responsible for a fatal stabbing over a Popeyes chicken sandwich has been identified.

Investigators believe 30-year-old Ricoh McClain, is responsible for the death of a 28-year-old man at a Popeyes restaurant in Oxon Hill, Maryland, about 12 miles south of Washington, D.C. on Nov. 4, a spokesperson for the Prince Georges County Police Department told reporters at a news conference Tuesday.

McClain, who is considered armed and dangerous, has former addresses in Washington, D.C., and Maryland and is believed to still be in the area, police said. A $25,000 reward is being offered for information leading to his arrest.

PHOTO: Ricoh McClain, 30, is pictured in an undated photo released by the Prince George’s County Police Department on Nov. 12, 2019.
Ricoh McClain, 30, is pictured in an undated photo released by the Prince George’s County Police Department on Nov. 12, 2019.
Prince George’s County Police

Police also announced that they have interviewed a woman seen in the surveillance video of the incident but clarified that she is a witness, not a suspect, and that they do not expect to charge her.

Investigators still believe that the incident began over an argument that ensued after the victim cut the line in front of several customers waiting to order food. McClain then allegedly stabbed the man after agreeing to take the fight outside, police said. There is no indication that the pair knew each other before the fight.

PHOTO: Police say a man was stabbed to death outside a Popeyes restaurant in Oxon Hill, Md., after an argument that started while people were in line to buy chicken sandwiches, Nov. 4, 2019.
Police say a man was stabbed to death outside a Popeyes restaurant in Oxon Hill, Md., after an argument that started while people were in line to buy chicken sandwiches, Nov. 4, 2019.
WJLA

Police do not believe McClain acted in self defense and have charged him with both first-degree and second-degree murder.

After the man's death, a Popeyes spokesperson said in a statement to ABC News that the company was "very sad to hear about the tragedy."

"We do not yet know whether this was the result of a dispute over one of our products or something unrelated, but there is no reason for someone to lose their life on a Monday night in a parking lot," the spokesperson said. "Our thoughts are with the victim’s family and friends and we are fully cooperating with local authorities.”

ABC News' Sarah Shales and Morgan Winsor contributed to this report.