Devin Williams Jr: 'Disturbed' sheriff shoots married couple, 42 and 58, dead after breaking into their home
SAN FRANCISCO BAY AREA, CALIFORNIA: A 24-year-old California sheriff turned himself into authorities after he shot dead a married couple in their home on Wednesday, September 7. According to Dublin Police Chief Garrett Holmes, his department received a 911 call at around 12:45 am stating that a couple had been shot by an armed intruder who had broken into their home in the 3100 block of Colebrook Lane. The victims - a 42-year-old female and a 58-year-old male - died on the spot.
Witnesses named the gunman Devin Williams Jr, an Alameda County Sheriff's Office deputy, and claimed that he fled the scene in his car, reported BuzzFeedNews. This information prompted a statewide hunt for the officer that lasted hours. Holmes claimed that Williams called law enforcement and said he wanted to turn himself.
READ MORE
The California Highway Patrol arrested Williams near Coalinga, about 160 miles south of Dublin, according to the police chief, who spoke with Williams on the phone for 45 minutes. "It’s a great loss for our community, and it's even more disheartening to find out that it was one of our own that actually was the trigger person behind this tragic incident," Holmes said during the press conference. Authorities believe Williams knew the couple, according to Lt Ray Kelly of the Alameda County Sheriff's Office, but the nature of their relationship is still being looked into.
"We believe we’ll get the full picture and at some point we’ll land on a motive," Kelly told reporters. "This was not a random crime." Kelly said that the incident was "a bizarre chain of events that happened," adding that the sheriff's office was unaware of any problems with Williams. The latter started working for Alameda County exactly a year ago. "This is not something we deal with, this is not what we're about," Kelly said, adding "We had no idea that this could happen."
Kelly said Williams grew up in an affluent home and was "really a remarkable young person" having graduated from college with honors. He had previously worked as an officer with the Stockton Police Department but was fired after he failed to make it through his probationary period due to problems with "his abilities and skill set" rather than difficulties with his conduct, according to Kelly. Williams worked for Stockton police from January 2020 to January 2021, a spokeswoman told the portal.
An @ACSOSheriffs deputy allegedly broke into a Dublin family's home and murdered 2 people today. Sheriff's Lt. Kelly said, "Our agency is in shock. We had no idea that this could happen."
— Amy Larson (@AmyLarson25) September 7, 2022
My full story: https://t.co/nwZhkFERCU pic.twitter.com/vEN58W4LZo
The Alameda sheriff's office recruited him after conducting "a complete and thorough" background check and psychiatric examination; they found nothing of concern. His background was immaculate," Kelly said. But sometime in the last several months, "significant events" must have happened in his life that his supervisors were unaware of, Kelly said. Williams called officials to surrender, and the official observed that Williams was obviously "disturbed" and in a crisis.
Officials think Williams arrived at the house when the victims were asleep. There was a youngster and two other family members when the shooting took place.
To ascertain whether there was a love link, a business relationship, or some other kind of connection to the pair, Kelly said they are investigating "all angles." He confirmed that Williams, a Black man, is unrelated to the two Asian victims. "There was some relationship that was formed rather recently within the past year and we're looking into what that is," Kelly said. "What was it, I don't know and I think we will get an answer to that."