Skip to main content

Jury convicts man who killed 2 after losing $80 in Pontiac dice game

Officials say the man used a potato in an unsuccessful attempt to silence gunshots

Davonte Demetri Franklin, 34, of Detroit, has been found guilty on two counts of first-degree murder for a double fatal shooting of two men at a Pontiac apartment Oct. 8, 2024. (Courtesy Oakland County Jail)

OAKLAND COUNTY, Mich. – A Detroit man accused of fatally shooting two men in a Pontiac apartment because he was angry he lost $80 in a dice game was found guilty of all charges by an Oakland County jury last week.

Davonte Demetri Franklin, 34, faced two counts of first-degree murder for the deaths of 20-year-old Sidney Ward III, of Highland Park, and 24-year-old Tyrone Davis Glenn Jr., of Pontiac, at an apartment in the 100 block of North Sanford Street on Oct. 8, 2024.

Officials said Franklin tried to use a potato to silence the gunshots, however witnesses still reported hearing shots being fired. Police said Ward was pronounced dead at the scene and Glenn was taken to a nearby hospital where he died a short time later.

Franklin was apprehended by police roughly 12 hours after the murders, in the area of 8 Mile and Evergreen Roads.

In addition to the first-degree murder charges, the jury found Franklin guilty for felon in possession of a firearm and three counts of using a firearm in the commission of a felony.

His sentencing is scheduled for 8:30 a.m. on Aug. 3 before Oakland County Circuit Court Judge Kwame’ L. Rowe.