Alameda County deputy charged in killings of Dublin couple

DUBLIN, Calif. (KION-TV)- UPDATE September 9, 2022, at 1:21 p.m. A Northern California sheriff’s deputy was charged Friday in the killings of a husband and wife who were shot inside their home, prosecutors said.

Prosecutors charged Devin Williams Jr., a deputy with the Alameda County Sheriff’s Office, with two counts of murder and with the special circumstance of avoiding lawful arrest after he fled the Dublin home of Benison and Maria Tran, Alameda County District Attorney Nancy O’Malley said in a statement.

Williams, 24, surrendered to law enforcement hours after he was accused of the slayings. Williams appeared in court Friday but didn’t enter a plea. His attorney, Jesse Garcia, did not immediately return a message seeking comment.

Benison Tran, 57, was a retired civil engineer and Maria Tran, 42, was a nurse that Williams met at John George Psychiatric Hospital in San Leandro, where she worked. Benison Tran retired last year after working nearly 29 years as a civil engineer for the city of Santa Clara, said Michelle Templeton, a city spokeswoman.

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UPDATE September 8, 2022, at 1:21 p.m.- The husband and wife allegedly killed by a sheriff’s deputy in Northern California were a retired civil engineer and a nurse, their relatives and former co-workers said Thursday.

Benison Tran, 57, and his wife, Maria Tran, 42, were fatally shot inside their Dublin home Wednesday. Four other relatives who were in the home, including their child, were unharmed, Lt. Ray Kelly, a spokesperson with the Alameda County Sheriff’s Office, said.

A relative of the Trans who witnessed the slayings called police and identified Devin Williams Jr., a deputy with the Alameda County Sheriff’s Office, as the gunman, Kelly said.

Williams, 24, turned himself in to law enforcement hours after he was accused in the fatal slayings. Williams is scheduled to be arraigned in the killings on Friday. It was not immediately known if he has retained an attorney who can speak on his behalf.

Maria Tran was a nurse who helped financially support her extended family after they immigrated from Vietnam in 2004, Diem Thuy Le, Maria Tran’s cousin, told the San Francisco Chronicle.

Le described her cousin as a generous, hardworking person.

“She was always there for me,” Le, choking back sobs, told the newspaper. “How can I accept this?”

She said she didn’t know Williams.

Benison Tran retired last year after working nearly 29 years as a civil engineer for the city of Santa Clara, said Michelle Templeton, a city spokeswoman.

“We are shocked and deeply saddened to hear about the loss of our long-time friend and former colleague, Benison Tran, and his wife yesterday,” Templeton said in a statement.

Williams knew the couple, and investigators are still trying to determine the motive, Kelly said.

He made it 160 miles (258 kilometers) south of the crime scene to the city of Coalinga where he called police in Dublin to say he wanted to surrender, Kelly said.

Williams had been with the sheriff’s office since September 2021 and was still on probation. He had been assigned to the Oakland courthouse, and there were no concerns about his job performance, Kelly said.

The Associated Press wrote this update.

Alameda County deputy arrested in connection with morning Dublin double homicide

UPDATE September 7, 2022, at 12:21 p.m.- An Alameda County Sheriff's Officer deputy was arrested in the Coalinga area after he allegedly shot and killed a married couple in a Dublin home Wednesday morning.

A Dublin Police spokesperson said Devin Williams Jr. was arrested while driving a grey Volkswagen Jetta. He is expected to be taken back to Dublin to face criminal charges.

A total of 6 people were in the home when Williams Jr. allegedly killed the couple, said the spokesperson. The two victims, Williams Jr., a child, and two others. The victims were a 48-year-old woman and a 58-year-old man.

A source close to the investigation told KTVU that investigators are looking into allegations that Williams Jr. was having an affair with the woman killed.

The spokesperson for Dublin Police said Williams Jr. was on shift for the Alameda County Sheriff's Office from 8 a.m. and took overtime at Alameda County Santa Rita Jail until 7 p.m. Police are investigating the remaining timeline.

ORIGINAL STORY

Two people have been killed inside a Dublin home, and an Alameda County deputy is wanted for their murder after a shooting Wednesday morning, said law officials.

According to the Alameda County Sheriff's Office, Dublin Police officers arrived at a home on the 3100 block of Colebrook Lane near Fallon Road in East Dublin at about 12:45 a.m.

The caller said two people were shot inside the residence, and the suspect fled the scene in a vehicle.

Witnesses identified the shooter as 24-year-old Devin Williams Jr., an Alameda County Sheriff's Office deputy. Williams remains at large, and police say he is armed and dangerous.

Officers found a male and female suffering from gunshot wounds. Medical aid was called to the residence, but both subjects died of their injuries on the scene, said deputies.

Investigators say he has a home in Stockton and is driving either a grey 2007 Volkswagen Jetta with California license plate 6MEA916 or a 2015 Hyundai with California license plate 9BMB449.

Anyone who has seen Williams, Jr. or his vehicles are asked to call 911 immediately. Do not attempt to contact him. The public is asked to contact the Dublin Police with any additional information which may assist with this investigation. 

This article was written with help from KPIX.