CHESAPEAKE
A man abducted and shoved into a van just before a police shootout in Chesapeake apparently was dead in the vehicle before the shooting began.
The body of Tione Demetrius Vincent, 30, of Norfolk, was discovered in the van after the police shootout and was believed to have been shot by his captors, Chesapeake Police Chief Kelvin Wright said in a news conference at the police department headquarters this afternoon. One suspect, Christopher White, 24, was killed by police.
Wright said White exited the van with a high-powered automatic weapon and began firing on police. Police returned fire. White was wanted in Norfolk for robbery, conspiracy and failure to appear in court, officials said. Two other suspects are in custody. They are:
- Willie Simmons, a Chesapeake resident, who has been charged with first-degree murder, abduction and attempted capital murder on a police officer. His attorney, A. Robinson Winn, has scheduled a bond hearing for 2 p.m. Wednesday.
- Dedrion Arimas Short, charged with capital murder, first-degree murder, attempted capital murder, abduction and three counts of using a firearm in the commission of a felony.
Sean Fleming, 26, the police officer who was shot, was airlifted to Sentara Norfolk General Hospital and was in stable condition. Officials released his name at a 3 p.m. press conference today, and said he graduated from the Chesapeake Police Academy in August 2008.
Fleming had just left work at the department’s third precinct when he heard about the pursuit, Wright said. He arrived at the scene in his personal vehicle and was shot multiple times. Wright declined to say where Fleming was struck. He said the young officer’s quick thinking probably saved his life. He was wearing a bullet-proof vest and ducked behind his car.
Dozens of people witnessed Vincent’s violent abduction from the 900 block of E. Liberty St. in Norfolk Monday afternoon. It resembled a scene straight out of a TV movie, Andre Hunter, a friend of the victim, said in an interview with The Pilot today.
Hunter, Vincent and several others were at a friend’s house on East Liberty in the Berkley section of Norfolk near the Chesapeake line, Hunter said. They were playing dominos and cards and drinking beer beneath a back yard tent. Neighbors up and down the street were out on porches or working on their lawns, Hunter said today.
Tione Vincent left the yard briefly.
“All of a sudden, we see Tione coming around the corner, and this van is trailing him. And the van cuts him off,” Hunter said.
People froze as a man jumped from the passenger side wielding an assault weapon, screaming at Vincent: “Get your ass in the van!”
Vincent resisted, Hunter said, replying: “Hey, for what? I don’t know anything about any of this stuff.”
Hunter said he and friends had heard that the abductors may have had “some kind of a beef” with a brother of Vincent’s but didn’t know why. “They kidnapped this man,” Hunter said. “He had nothing to do with it.”
“When I saw that assault rifle, it was horrifying, man,” Hunter said. “When you see it in the movies, you think nothing of it. But when you see it … it’s scary.”
Hunter said he focused on the make and color of the white Chevrolet van and its license-plate number. “I’ll never forget those numbers,” he said. “I just kept reciting them.”
The man with the gun took a swing at Vincent but missed, and then tried unsuccessfully to grab Vincent by his dreadlocks. But at gunpoint, Vincent got into the van and it left, Hunter said. The incident in the usually quiet neighborhood was over in about 45 seconds, Hunter said.
Four or five witnesses immediately called police on cell phones, he said. An off-duty Norfolk officer in an unmarked car arrived within two minutes.
The officer called Hunter over and rolled down his window. Hunter blurted out the van’s license number and description, over and over, he said.
The officer radioed Norfolk and Chesapeake authorities. Another friend reminded Hunter to mention Vincent’s ankle monitor – Vincent was on house arrest for what Hunter said was a domestic offense, which required him to be home by 7 p.m.
The officer “jumped into action” at that, Hunter said. Listening in on the officer’s police radio, Hunter heard authorities within minutes track Vincent – and the van – to a few blocks of Dominion Boulevard in Chesapeake.
“It was beautiful to see a real policeman do real police work,” Hunter said.
That officer left, but other officers returned to further question Hunter. Hunter, worried about repercussions from the abductors, went home to change clothes. When he returned, he heard that Vincent was dead.
Hunter called Vincent a “good guy,” a family man who helped with cash those hurting from the poor economy, and who was careful about his curfew.
Vincent worked several businesses, including carpet-cleaning, grass-cutting, power-washing and, with his wife, operating a lunch truck called Binky’s, selling sandwiches and fish to shipyard workers, Hunter said.
“We miss him very much,” Hunter said. “His death was a very senseless tragedy. It’s murder; it was murder. That’s the definition of murder.”
Yesterday, the shooting shut down I-64 at the High Rise Bridge and I-64 West at George Washington Highway for several hours at the request of police, but both sides of I-64 reopened about 6:30 p.m. The northbound ramp from George Washington to I-64 was closed overnight, but was reopened this morning.
All suspects were arrested after an intense search by dozens of officers from several agencies who fanned out across the Deep Creek area. A Portsmouth officer found one suspect hiding under a pile of brush.
Officers with guns drawn searched the grounds around Deep Creek Middle School as people nearby locked themselves in and a youth-league baseball team took cover in a concession stand.
The shootout took place at a busy intersection near rush hour, so a large number of people either saw or heard it . Dave Watkins, who lives on Cedar Road in Chesapeake, said he was driving home from work on U.S. 17 after 4 p.m. when police cars passed him on both sides. The car in front of him slammed on brakes past Trade Street and suddenly began backing up . Watkins said he heard a series of gunshots about 10 cars up ahead. He got out of his tan Mazda and hid behind it.
Watkins then saw police officers drag out an officer - apparently Fleming - by his collar. He said he heard emergency-medical workers say the officer had been shot at least twice in the stomach.
Authorities did not say what kind of weapon was used, but they warned helicopters hovering overhead that they believed the suspects had a high-powered rifle.
Michael Ray Vaughan, owner of Princess Anne Pile and Lumber in the 2700 block of Trade St., said he generally closes his business around 4 p.m. It was shortly after that when he began to hear shots.
“If I had to guess, I would say there were 40 to 50 rounds of shots fired,” he said. “You could tell it was the altercation type of shots. There were several shots fired and then they stopped and then a whole bunch of shots fired again. You could tell it was gunfire right away and not kids playing with firecrackers.”
Vaughan watched a medical helicopter swoop into a Food Lion parking lot on Yadkin Road and within minutes transport who he believed was the wounded officer to the hospital.
“I went and got my pistol out and it’s lying here on my desk,” he said.
Staff writers Mike Saewitz, Alicia P.Q. Wittmeyer, Lou Hansen, Cindy Clayton and Vicki L. Friedman contributed to this report.
Kristin Davis, (757) 222-5208, kristin.davis@pilotonline.com
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AK-47 was Semiautomatic
Chesapeake Police have confirmed that the weapon used by White was a semiautomatic AK-47 rifle, not a fully automatic weapon. Specific quotes to this effect were given in a Virginian Pilot article entitled "Police say I-64 Suspect Used AK-47 Assault Rifle" by Major T.D. Branch of the department.
I was in the store today and
I was in the store today and saw the front page of your newspaper featuring this sad story. At first it did not hit me but later I felt agitated about the the layout of the front page. All four pictures of the men involved, including the victim, were lumped together as if all had committed a crime. Your paper should do a better job at making a distinction between the criminals and the victims!
Klaatu
"Where the heck did White get a machine gun anyway?
Submitted by Klaatu on Wed, 06/03/2009 at 12:58 pm."
If gun advocates had their way everyone who wants one could own an automatic weapon.
We rarely if at all read where these criminals get their guns. I'm like you, I'd like to know also.
Where the heck did White get a machine gun anyway?
Since White opened fire on police with an automatic weapon, it's a miracle that only one Police officer was shot, and only by one round, and it was not fatal. It must have been like Beruit, or something out of the movies.
Automatic weapons are illegal for just this reason, and it is shocking that no one is talking or asking how the heck Mr. White came to possess a machine gun!
Former Student
I taught Willie Simmons about five years ago or so when I still lived in the area before moving to DC. One of my former students e-mailed this link to me regarding Willie being charged with murder. As my student, Willie was respectful, jovial, performed well academically for my class, and was not a person who I thought would end up like this. But, who knows what happened to him once I left the area? As educators we can do but so much. Willie made a poor choice and allegedly committed a horrible crime, but hope is not lost. There is still hope that a lesson will be learned and that his life will be transformed positively even now as he is incarcerated. I believe in miracles, and even if he is imprisoned indefinitely, his heart may be changed and his mind may be transformed. My prayers go out to the victim's family and the suspects' families as well. There are no winners in cases such as these...sigh.
Totally Gang Related
Its nearly unreal to read this orignally article as many of the facts stated are incorrect or fall far short from reality. These fellows were all gang members with rap sheets as long as your arm. The abductee was not from a rival gang but from the same gang and had in some way crossed or wanted to distance himself from the group. While the loss of any life is tragic regardless of the cause, this abducted victim made his own bed...and yes gang members have families too.
The abductor, Mr. White was wanted for several offenses including relationships to other murders, also against the same gang affiliation.
This was 100 percent gang related. Perhaps the paper does not want to print that and instill panic in the community...but Norfolk does have a Gang Unit as do the other cities. If there weren't any gangs we would need gang units.
And the comment about the "Normally quiet community (Berkley)" You have got to be kidding, the neighborhood is off the hook. It is probably the most active criminal neighborhood in the city.
And Mr.Infomative mentioned in the article actually had little to say to responding police....but much to say to reporters obiviously. Those that did pro
Finally
Someone who knows what they are talking about. I have said in other posts to articles that the victim played a very big role in this happening as well. It appears that he was not exactly living the changed life that his wife wanted to believe in her mind. This kind of thing does not just happen for the heck of it. There is always more to the story than the general public will know at first. I'm sure in due time every bit of it will be released and we will all find that the only person in this event doing what was right was the officer. Thank god he is still alive.
Thank you
CPD and all police officers! You all are truly heroes!
So sad. I read through the
So sad. I read through the comments and while there is praise for the Chesapeake Police Dept (fully deserve it). There is very little compassion shown for the victim. Mr. Vincent seems to be innocent in all this. This man did not deserve this. He should be home with his family. One post said "seems to be black on black crime" like here we go again. People of all races, shades and back grounds commit crimes. So please keep the racism to a minimum. To Mr. Vincent's family, I am so sorry for your loss. My family and I will pray for you all. God Bless you.
What's heartbreaking is that
What's heartbreaking is that "black on black" crime is real. To deny it, is to put your head in the sand. According to the Department of Justice, 46.9% of ALL homicide victims are black and 52.2% of ALL homicide offenders are black. Now consider that only about 13% of the population is black. WHERE'S THE OUTRAGE?
Consider the following:
While 38% of all births in this country are to unmarried women, in the black community it is 70%. WHERE ARE THE FATHERS???
26% of black men between the ages of 18 and 24 do not have a high school diploma...and only 3% have a bachelor's degree or above. AGAIN, WHERE ARE THE FATHERS AND WHERE IS THE OUTRAGE? THE ONLY STREET CRED THAT MATTERS IS THE TYPE OBAMA HAS....AND THE STREET IS PENNSYLVANIA AVE!!!
opps
The point I was trying to make at the end of the last post which apparently was too long,is: I would never b selfish enough to ask another human to take a bullet for me, if you would then good luck getting one there in time! And once these brave souls do, have the courtesy to atleast go visit the family and maybe explain to them why your life was more important.
An officer was shot and a man who appears to be a victim was killed,have sympathy, focus on helping our 'neighbors' get thru the hard times and not on controlling freedom.
Should've also mentioned
My sympathy also goes to the family of Tione D.Vincent. It appears he was a victim as well? Atleast not killed while he committed a crime.Regardless of his past mistakes he was loved by someone.It also seems he was trying to get on the right path. He in a way may have also saved lives? Possible that had he not complied at gun point they would have shot at him, after all they shot an officer & those present.These guys arent small time criminals!Stray bullets could have hit anyone out enjoying the day! With that said...
Why is it restrictions on law abiding citizens gets pulled into every bad guy scenario? How about better control on criminals? Theres major differences between crime &those who take responsibility 4themselves &families.Despite a belief stated earlier,MOST criminals get guns from black markets(not gun shows) nor stealing them from those of us who practice safety 1st.I for one will not be a victim willingly! White,Black,Asian,Hispanic none of us are above the criminals reach or repercussions. You do NOT live in a bubble despite what you like to think.I use 2B anti-gun till I researched&learned guns aren't the problem,those who use them in CRIME are!I cant afford body
1st Degree vs Capital Punishment
Actually capital murder carries a harsher punishemt, the death penalty. I believe capital murder is usually 1st degree murder but based on aggravating circumstances it is elevated to capital murder.
Andre Hunter is a hero too...
I used to live in Deep Creek... I moved away 25 years ago to live in Richmond. I moved because I fell in love with a State Trooper stationed in the Richmond area. Thank God my darling husband retired years ago and I can now sleep peacefully without fear of what might happen to him while on duty. There is no doubt in my mind that once the word went over the wire that a police officer had been shot, hundreds of family members of police officers prayed it wasn't their loved one... and they prayed even harder that the officer would survive. I know this firsthand from my own experiences of hearing about officers being shot.
With that said I give thanks to men like Andre Hunter who make it possible for a police officer to survive. He gave valuable information when he let the police know that these men had an assault rifle and by memorizing the license plate number. Just like the police officers, he risked his life to come to the aid of his friend, Tione Vincent. Some have decided to focus on the fact that Mr. Vincent was wearing a tracking bracelet. Well I for one have been known to exceed the speed limit, so I too am a criminal of sorts. When I am caught, I pay for my crim
Andre Hunter is a Hero - Part Two
Didn't realize I exceeded the 750 characters limit. It lets you keep typing, so who knew? I wanted to make a point that Mr. Vincent is paying for his crimes and didn't deserve to be a victim of such a horrible crime. Anyway... it cut off the important ending which was me saying thanks to Mr. Hunter. He risked his like for his friend and for his community. He choose to put fear aside and do the right thing by not allowing these killers to get away with a crime in his community. He took a stand to do the right thing, knowing that talking with the police might bring him trouble from others. Taking that kind of risk makes Mr. Hunter a hero to me too! I wish there were more like him in our world!
Great Job
Kudos to the police department for ridding us of scum like these. Saved the tax payer a few thousand dollars in court cost and attorney fees.
Thanks for all you do!!
Simmons must talking to the police
Simmons must be saying that Short was the trigger man who killed Vincent. That would explain why Short is charged with capital murder and Simmons highest charge is first degree murder.
I bet all of these guys were out on bail, parole or some other form of soft justice. A study of their records should be conducted to determine whether any judges were lax in letting any of them out of jail.
Vincent's brother appears to have information worth gathering.
Patriot
I was very surprised at the many positive remarks commenting on the great job Chesapeake Police did. Patriot is obviously representing the anti-police view. He asks if the CPD would have shut down I64 had it been him shot. Of course he already has the answer. Police had just encountered three thugs who shot at them with an assault rifle then fled into the woods beside I64. Police could allow traffic to go so no one had to be inconvenienced or they could keep passer-bys safe by not allowing them to drive into a "killzone". Now had traffic been allowed to flow and a motorist was shot what would patriot say. "Why didn't they protect me...they wouldn't let a cop drive through there." The good thing is that CPD decided to handle it without seeking the various input. The results were one bad guy dead, two going to trial, and no civilian casualities.
No comparison
Nothing in my comment was derogatory to the Chesapeake Police Department who I said was a fine department. My point is that if RF got 10 years, what should these guys get? Wow. How some of you draw conclusions from what you read is amazing.
Hopefully they all get life
Hopefully they all get life behind bars. I am sure this is not their 1st run in with the law.