2015 Washington, D.C., mass killing

2015 Washington, D.C., mass killing
Location Woodley Park, Washington, D.C., U.S.
Date May 13–14, 2015
Target Savopoulos family
Attack type
 Mass killing, arson
Weapons Knife, blunt object, fire by arson[1]
Deaths 4
Suspected perpetrator
 Daron Dylon Wint[2] and unknown accomplices

On May 14, 2015, three members of the Savopoulos family—Savvas, Amy, and their son Philip—as well as their housekeeper, Veralicia Figueroa, were killed at the Savopoulos home in Washington, D.C..[1][3] The victims were held hostage for nineteen hours, starting on May 13. Ten-year-old Philip was tortured in order to coerce $40,000 in cash from the family.[4] The perpetrator(s) restrained them with duct tape before killing them, then set the house on fire.[3] They all sustained blunt force trauma, and Philip was also stabbed.

Robbery and murder

The perpetrators stole $40,000 in cash from the family after an assistant delivered it to the house.[4] They also stole the family's blue Porsche,[4] which was later found burned in a church parking lot in Maryland.[5]

On May 14, 2015, the Savopoulos house in Northwest Washington was spotted ablaze and firefighters were called. They discovered the four bodies of the Savopoulos family and their housekeeper.[6] The police determined the fire was intentionally set, and the victims had blunt-force and stab wounds, leading them to label the deaths homicides.[3]

Victims

The Savopouloses were a prominent, upper-class family in the Woodley Park neighborhood of Northwest Washington. Savvas Savopoulos was the CEO and President of American Iron Works, a construction company that played a role in building the Verizon Center.[3]

The slain victims are:

Two teenage daughters, Abigail and Katerina Savopoulos, were not present at the scene when the four were killed.

Suspect

Daron Dylon Wint (born November 27, 1980) was identified by police as the prime suspect in the case. He was found by matching his DNA to that found on the crust of a Domino's pizza delivered to the house on May 13, while the family was apparently captive.[7] He was a certified welder who formerly worked at American Iron Works, leading police to believe the murders weren't random.[8]

Wint is originally from Guyana and immigrated to the US in 2000. He was a United States Marine Corps recruit but was discharged before his training was complete for medical reasons. He had a long rap sheet of criminal charges; he was convicted in 2009 of second-degree assault in Maryland and sentenced to 30 days in jail, and also pleaded guilty to the crime of malicious destruction of property in 2010 as part of a plea deal where a second charge of burglary was dropped.[9] He has also been charged in the past with theft, assault, a sexual offense,[10] and weapons possession.[9]

After Wint's DNA was matched, a warrant was issued for his arrest on a charge of first-degree murder.[11] Wint was found and arrested on May 21, 2015, in northeast Washington, a week after the murders,[9] and was subsequently charged with first-degree murder.[12]

Prosecutors believe Wint had help killing the victims and did not act alone.[12] Wint is the only person charged in the deaths.[13]

Reactions

Attorney Robin Ficker said that Wint did not seem violent when he defended him in earlier cases. "My impression of him — I remember him rather well — is that he wouldn't hurt a fly. He's a very nice person," Ficker said.[9] He then characterized Wint as "kind and gentle" and added that authorities have arrested "the wrong guy" in the Savopoulos case, claiming, "They've made a big mistake here."[14] Ficker also said that Wint's family had told him "that he doesn't like pizza and never eats pizza", referring to the matching of Wint's DNA to that found on a pizza at the crime scene.[15]

See also

References

  1. 1 2 "Police search New York home, talk to girlfriend of suspect in D.C. murder mystery". CNN. May 21, 2015. Retrieved May 21, 2015.
  2. ↑ Carter, Brianne; Ford, Sam; Roussey, Tom; Donelan, Jennifer (May 21, 2015). "Ex-con Daron Wint appears in court, had help in D.C. quadruple slayings, authorities say". WJLA. Retrieved December 30, 2015.
  3. 1 2 3 4 Jouvenal, Justin; Zapotosky, Matt; Morse, Dan (May 15, 2015). "Four found in D.C. fire were slain, police say". Washington Post. Retrieved May 21, 2015.
  4. 1 2 3 Leshan, Bruce (May 20, 2015). "$40K delivered to home, boy tortured before DC murders, fire". WUSA. Retrieved May 21, 2015.
  5. ↑ "Report: D.C. family was held before being killed, house torched". WTOP. May 19, 2015. Retrieved May 21, 2015.
  6. ↑ Marraco, Marina; Limon, Alexandra (May 14, 2015). "3 adults, 1 child found dead at suspicious NW DC house fire". MyFoxDC.com. Retrieved May 21, 2015.
  7. ↑ Phillip, Abby; Alexander, Keith L. (May 21, 2015). "How a Domino's pizza crust led police to a suspect in mysterious D.C. slayings". Washington Post. Retrieved May 21, 2015.
  8. ↑ Hermann, Peter; Bui, Lynh (May 21, 2015). "Suspect in quadruple killings worked for victims' family business, police say". Washington Post. Retrieved May 21, 2015.
  9. 1 2 3 4 Nuckols, Ben (May 22, 2015). "Suspect in killings of wealthy DC family arrested". Associated Press. Retrieved May 22, 2015.
  10. ↑ Brown, Pamela; Johns, Joe; Jaffe, Alexandra; Conlon, Kevin (May 22, 2015). "Source: Suspect in DC quadruple homicide, arson arrested". CNN. Retrieved May 22, 2015.
  11. ↑ "Suspect ID'd in quadruple murder in Northwest D.C.". ABC 7 News. May 20, 2015. Retrieved May 21, 2015.
  12. 1 2 Botelho, Greg; Mallonee, Mary Kay; Payne, Ed (May 22, 2015). "Prosecutors: Suspect in Washington family's killings did not act alone". CNN. Retrieved May 22, 2015.
  13. ↑ Hermann, Peter (May 22, 2015). "Suspect in 4 gruesome D.C. killings might not have acted alone, police say". Washington Post. Retrieved December 30, 2015.
  14. ↑ Botelho, Greg (May 22, 2015). "Who is DC murder suspect Darron Dellon Dennis Wint ?". CNN.com. CNN. Retrieved May 23, 2015.
  15. ↑ Iannelli, Nick (May 26, 2015). "Daron Wint's family doesn't believe he is guilty of D.C. murder, arson". WTOP-FM. Retrieved June 2, 2015.
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