COBB COUNTY, Ga. – A lengthy investigation has culminated in the conviction of a man for a chilling murder that occurred seven years ago, solving the cold case of a local Atlanta father whose life was tragically and brutally ended.
In a recent court ruling, 22-year-old Dontavian Jones was found guilty of multiple charges, including murder, kidnapping, armed robbery, aggravated assault, and the possession of a firearm during the commission of a felony. The verdict arrives over a half-decade after the murder of 41-year-old Dewenzell Spence, a father from Atlanta whose disappearance and subsequent death had puzzled authorities.
On June 3, 2016, a disturbing discovery was made in the woods of Mableton, a locale within Cobb County. The highly decomposed body of Spence was found, triggering an intense investigation by local police. It wasn’t long before detectives turned to Spence’s last known financial transactions, uncovering two withdrawals made from his account at a nearby Bank of America ATM.
Bank surveillance footage revealed critical details to the investigators. The video captured Spence at the ATM, appearing to be under duress, standing beside two men for nearly seven minutes. While one suspect concealed his identity with a mask and a shirt over his head, the other did not attempt to hide his face, an oversight that would later prove pivotal to the case.
The breakthrough in identifying the unmasked suspect came with the assistance of facial recognition technology. In January 2020, investigators identified that individual as Terrance Marshall, originally from Cochran, Georgia. Marshall, 19 at the time of the murder, was already in police custody following his involvement in a high-speed chase in Alabama. This chase ended dramatically, with Marshall and an accomplice abandoning their vehicle, a white Dodge caravan, which was seen in the bank’s surveillance footage and exploded shortly after they fled.
Both Marshall and Jones were confirmed as the individuals in the surveillance video through a combination of facial recognition software and additional evidence gathered in the aftermath of their arrest. According to investigators, in the hours leading up to Spence’s murder, Jones and Marshall, driving a stolen van, encountered Spence as he walked toward a local MARTA station. The pair forced Spence at gunpoint into the van, drove to Mableton, compelled him to withdraw $50 from the ATM, and subsequently executed him in a secluded wooded area.
Senior Assistant District Attorney Stephanie Green spoke about the harrowing nature of the crime. “What we see here is the sort of horror one hopes only exists in films. Imagine the terror Mr. Spence faced, walking to work, only to be abducted, threatened, and taken to an unfamiliar location to be mercilessly killed. These perpetrators stripped a man of his life as he was merely going about his day. For their actions, they deserve to remain behind bars indefinitely,” she said.
Marshall was tried and convicted earlier in January 2023, receiving a life sentence without the possibility of parole, plus an additional five years. Jones awaits his sentencing, scheduled for July 15, 2024, where he faces similar severe penalties.
As the community recalls the fear that gripped the area following Spence’s death, this conviction provides some closure to a case that lingered in the minds of local residents and law enforcement. It also underscores the relentless pursuit of justice, even when the trail seems cold, and the importance of advancements in forensic technology in solving crimes.