Officials claimed a sheriff’s deputy surrendered himself after reportedly fatally shooting a married couple at their house in California.
Officials said the Alameda County Sheriff’s Office deputy was off-duty when he allegedly committed the double killing early Wednesday at a residence in Dublin before leaving the area. The deputy’s firearm, which he discarded of in a rural location, is the alleged murder weapon, according to the sheriff’s office.
The sheriff’s office had cautioned that the accused, 24-year-old Devin Williams, Jr., was still at large after the shooting, triggering a nationwide manhunt, and should be regarded as armed and risky.
Chief Garrett Holmes, a commander with the sheriff’s office and the chief of police services for the city of Dublin, declared during a midday press conference that Williams supposedly called the office earlier that morning to turn himself in and was just taken into custody near Coalinga, several hours south.
During the conference, Alameda County Lt. Ray Kelly informed reporters that Chief Holmes himself talked the subject into surrendering and spent about 45 minutes on the phone with him to convince him to surrender quietly.
Kelly stated that deputies were transporting Williams back to Dublin. At this moment, it is unknown whether the accused has a lawyer who can talk on his side.
Police were called to the residence at 12:45 a.m. after a 911 caller reported an intruder “brandishing a handgun,” according to Holmes. According to him, two persons were shot and declared dead at the site.
It’s a terrible loss for the community, and it’s much more heartbreaking to learn that one of their own was the catalyst for this horrible tragedy, Holmes said.
Kelly said there were six individuals in the house at the time of the incident, along with a kid and the two victims. He described a member of the family who was visiting at the time as a “critical eyewitness.”
Kelly identified the victims as a 42-year-old lady and a 58-year-old male. Their identities have not yet been disclosed by officials. He stated that the two had a kid together, but he did not elaborate.
Kelly stated that they are looking into a possible reason for the shooting as well as the relationship between Williams and the victims.
There is a link between Mr. Williams and the victims, he explained.
As per Kelly, Williams has been with the sheriff’s office for a year. Prior to applying to be a sheriff’s deputy, he was enrolled in a field training officer programme in Stockton after graduating from the police academy, according to Kelly. Williams was fired away after failing his probation to become a single cop.
Case Update: Suspect in custody per @DublinCAPolice pic.twitter.com/XSfsnZCwKm
— Alameda County Sheriff (@ACSOSheriffs) September 7, 2022
A lot of the difficulties we discovered were connected to his skill set and his ability to accomplish the job successfully, Kelly explained. They were not based on any kind of behaviour. It was more that his abilities and skill set did not satisfy the requirements of this position. So they let him leave at that time. That is not unusual.
Kelly stated that Williams was a “very good prospect” for law enforcement and that the agency is “in disbelief.”
Some crucial incidents occurred in the last few months of his life, leading up to this point. Many of these occurrences remained unnoticed and unreported. And they’re going to look into it, Kelly stated. He believes there are a lot of unanswered questions.
