Alabama man charged with capital murder in UA student double shooting
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An Alabama man accused of shooting to death a University of Alabama student, a father of three and a family dog was captured hiding in an attic area just hours after the victims were found in a home, authorities said.
De’Kendrick Crawford, 24, is charged with capital murder in the July 6 deaths of 22-year-old Jazmine Alexis Bates and 31-year-old Jose Felix Alvarez-Duenas, according to the Tuscaloosa County Violent Crimes Unit.
The investigation began after a homeowner who was out of the country became concerned when he could not reach Alvarez-Duenas, whom he asked to stay at home and look after his dog.
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Photo of De’Kendrick Crawford following his arrest in Tuscaloosa County, Alabama. (Tuscaloosa County Sheriff’s Office)
After checking doorbell cameras, she saw a man acting suspiciously on her back porch during the night and asked the homeowner to contact the police.
When Brookwood officers arrived for a welfare check, they found Alvarez-Duenas dead just inside the front door.
When they evacuated the house, they found Bates dead in the bedroom closet. They were both shot. The homeowner’s dog was also killed.
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Investigators said Bates, Alvarez-Duenas and the homeowner knew each other from working at a local business. Crawford had also worked there before and knew all three.
Doorbell camera footage, electronic evidence and other physical evidence led detectives to Crawford, who was quickly tracked to a relative’s apartment in Northport.
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Rather than surrender, Crawford barricaded himself inside the apartment, prompting a massive response from local, state and federal law enforcement.
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Jose Felix Alvarez-Duenas poses with his three young children in an undated family photo. (GoFundMe)
Officers eventually entered the apartment and found him hiding in an attic area about 10 hours after the victims were discovered.
Crawford was arrested July 7 on charges of capital murder involving two or more persons and discharging a firearm into an occupied building, according to jail records.
The homicide investigation also revealed that Crawford was wanted on an unrelated felony warrant in connection with a shooting that occurred near the University of Alabama in May.
Police allege Crawford fired several shots into an occupied office building near Coleman Coliseum after he was fired from a contracting job on campus.
Friends, family and former co-workers remembered University of Alabama student Jazmine Bates following her death. (GoFundMe)
Officials emphasized that the contractor position had nothing to do with the local business where he worked with the victims.
The murders stunned friends and former co-workers at Buffalo Phil’s Wings, where Bates, Alvarez-Duenas, the landlord and Crawford had previously worked together.
“It is with shattered hearts that we share the unimaginable loss of two beloved members of our work family,” the restaurant wrote on Facebook. “Felix and Jazmine were more than employees; they were family.”
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Jose Felix Alvarez-Duenas smiles while holding a bottle in an undated photo. (Felix Alvarez’s Facebook)
The restaurant remembered Alvarez-Duenas as a “dedicated single father to three beautiful children,” adding that “nothing in this world made him prouder than being their father.”
Bates, who moved to Alabama from Chicago, was expected to graduate from the University of Alabama in December. The restaurant noted that she “came here with big dreams and was determined to build a bright future,” and remembered her as someone with “a beautiful heart and a smile that made everyone around her feel welcome.”
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University of Alabama student Jazmine Alexis Bates smiles in an undated photo. (GoFundMe)
“Our hearts go out to Felix’s three children, their families, their friends, and everyone whose lives they touched,” the restaurant wrote. “Felix and Jazmine…you will never be forgotten.”
The University of Alabama also mourned Bates’ death.
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“We extend our deepest condolences to the family and friends of Jazmine Bates following this tragedy,” the university said in a statement to Fox News Digital. he said. “UA staff has contacted his family to offer support. Counseling and support resources are available to affected students through the Office of Student Care and Welfare.”
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The university also thanked local law enforcement and the University of Alabama Police Department for their response.
GoFundMe pages were created to support Alvarez-Duenas’ three children and to assist Bates’ family with funeral expenses and transportation costs to get her back to her hometown of Chicago.
