WILMINGTON, DE — In a major victory for law enforcement, a Wilmington man has been convicted of multiple felonies, including three separate counts of attempted murder. Delaware Attorney General Kathy Jennings announced the conviction on Wednesday.
Bakr Dillard, 42, was found guilty in connection with a brutal shooting incident in April 2022. Dillard and his associates fired over 15 rounds into a car carrying three individuals, parked at the corner of 7th and Monroe Streets in Wilmington.
The charges against Dillard are extensive. They include three counts of Attempted Murder 1st Degree, Possession of a Firearm During the Commission of a Felony, Conspiracy 1st Degree, Possession of a Firearm by a Person Prohibited, Possession of Ammunition by a Person Prohibited, and Tampering with Physical Evidence.
In a separate trial on January 22, Dillard was convicted of three counts of Tier 3 Drug Dealing, Possession of a Firearm During the Commission of a Felony, Possession of a Firearm by a Person Prohibited, Conspiracy 2nd Degree, and Possession of Drug Paraphernalia. This conviction followed the discovery of weapons, drugs, and distribution materials during a search for an unrelated shooting case.
Dillard’s convictions come after a fierce manhunt that ended on January 20 when he was apprehended during a search warrant execution. Despite his attempt to evade arrest and dispose of evidence – including a handgun – officers from the Wilmington Police Department, Federal Bureau of Investigation, and Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives were successful in their pursuit. The police recovered over 500 grams of crack cocaine, 54 grams of a heroin/fentanyl mixture, over 3.5 kilograms of marijuana, two additional firearms with ammunition, and a substantial amount of packaging material for distributing narcotics.
As Dillard awaits sentencing, he faces the possibility of life imprisonment. Eligible to be sentenced as a habitual offender, he faces a minimum mandatory sentence of 89 years.
Despite the shocking nature of Dillard’s crimes, violent crime across Delaware, and particularly in Wilmington, has seen a significant decrease in recent years. In 2022, violent crime in Delaware reached an all-time low, with a 20% reduction in shootings since 2020. Furthermore, Wilmington hit a 20-year low in murders in 2023.
Attorney General Kathy Jennings expressed her gratitude to the prosecutors and detectives who brought this case to completion, stating, “An extremely violent gun offender will spend the rest of his life in prison because of excellent collaboration between Wilmington PD, prosecutors, and federal law enforcement.”
Chief Wilfredo Campos echoed this sentiment, praising the relentless efforts of detectives and the strong partnership with prosecutors in combatting gun violence, particularly in this case involving “particularly violent acts that posed a significant threat to the safety of our community.”
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