Man sentenced in 2014 burglary that ended in officer-involved shooting

Published 3:00 am Thursday, December 21, 2017

A Montgomery man involved in a 2014 burglary that led to an officer-involved shooting in Troy has been sentenced to five years in prison after he pleaded guilty to multiple felony charges.

Dewayne Alvin Dunford, 35, pleaded guilty to three charges of first-degree robbery and a charge of first-degree burglary – all Class A Felonies.

The charges are in connection with a burglary that occurred at the Easy Street Apartments on George Wallace Drive on December 18, 2014.

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Troy Police Chief Randall Barr, then a patrol captain for the department, said police responded to the call while the burglary was still in progress.

Dunford was one of four suspects arrested at the scene of the crime, but only after shots were fired.

Police say Dundray C. Dunford, 23, of Brundidge, exited on of the apartments carrying an SKS assault rifle, prompting officer Tim Ward to fire on the suspect. Ward was cleared of any wrongdoing in the incident by a Pike County Grand Jury in July 2015.

Jimmy Ennis, Troy Police Chief at the time, said he appreciated the hard work and dedication of ALEA, SBI and the District Attorney’s office during the investigation.

“I am glad that the officer was justified in his duties,” Ennis said. “Every day police officers all across this country face those types of situations, and they have to react. No officer goes to work and wants to use deadly force on the job. These officers go to work every day praying that they never have to use deadly force.”

Dundray Dunford was shot in the leg and recovered from his wounds.

Also arrested that night were Johnta L. Briggs, 33, of Dothan, and Dajuan D. Franklin, 21, of Dothan. All suspects were charged at the time with three counts of first-degree robbery and one count of first-degree burglary.

Class A Felonies are normally punishable by a minimum of 10 years to 99 years or life in prison. By entering a plea deal, Dewayne Dunford was sentenced instead to five years in prison on each charge, to run concurrently.

Dewayne Dunford has already served three years in prison awaiting his guilty plea and will serve for up to two more years.

Dundray Dunford was sentenced to 20 years on all charges in January 2016 to be served concurrently. He was granted parole in October this year after serving three years.

Briggs was sentenced to 24 years in prison in February 2016 and is awaiting a chance at parole in 2023. He has served three years of his sentence.