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Murder of the Savopoulos Family and Veralicia Figueroa

SOLVED2015Woodley Park, Washington, D.C.3 SOURCESUPDATED JUL 2026

Documents violence · crimes against children · torture — written to inform, not to shock.

Illustrative

On May 13–14, 2015, three members of the Savopoulos family—Savvas, Amy, and their 10-year-old son Philip—along with their housekeeper, Veralicia Figueroa, were held hostage for approximately 19 hours inside the family's Woodley Park home in Northwest Washington, D.C. During the ordeal, Philip was tortured in an effort to coerce the family into producing $40,000 in cash. An assistant, Jordan Wallace, delivered the money to the house at the perpetrators' direction. The victims were restrained with duct tape before being killed; all four sustained blunt-force trauma, and Philip was also stabbed. The perpetrators then set the house on fire and fled in the family's blue Porsche, which was later found burned in a church parking lot in Maryland.

On May 14, 2015, firefighters responding to the blaze at the Savopoulos residence discovered the four bodies. Police determined the fire had been intentionally set and, given the wounds found on the victims, classified the deaths as homicides.

The Savopouloses were a prominent family in the Woodley Park neighborhood. Savvas Savopoulos was CEO and president of American Iron Works, a construction company involved in building the Verizon Center, and he helped fund the National Child Research Center. The family were active members of Saint Sophia Greek Orthodox Cathedral. Two teenage daughters, Abigail and Katerina Savopoulos, were away at boarding school at the time and were not present during the killings.

Investigators identified Daron Dylon Wint, a certified welder previously employed by American Iron Works, as the prime suspect after matching his DNA to genetic material found on the crust of a Domino's pizza delivered to the house while the family was held captive. Because Wint had formerly worked for Savopoulos's company, police believed the crime was not random. A warrant was issued charging him with first-degree murder, and he was arrested on May 21, 2015, in Northeast Washington, D.C., about a week after the killings. Prosecutors stated they believed Wint had assistance in carrying out the killings, but he was the only person charged in the case.

Wint's trial began with opening statements on September 11, 2018. On October 25, 2018, he was found guilty of 20 counts including kidnapping, extortion, and murder. On February 1, 2019, he was sentenced to four consecutive life terms in prison without the possibility of parole. Wint appealed in December 2020, arguing the trial judge improperly barred his lawyers from calling an additional witness. On December 15, 2022, the D.C. Court of Appeals largely affirmed the conviction, acknowledging Wint had been improperly denied the chance to introduce some exculpatory evidence but declining to reverse the verdict given "the overwhelming weight of other evidence" against him.

Key facts

Victims
Amy Clare Savopoulos, Philip Savvas Savopoulos, Veralicia Figueroa, Savvas Phillip Savopoulos
Date
2015
Location
Woodley Park, Washington, D.C.
Case status
solved

Case timeline

  1. 2015-05-13

    Savvas, Amy, and Philip Savopoulos and housekeeper Veralicia Figueroa are taken hostage in their Washington, D.C. home; a Domino's pizza is delivered to the house during the captivity.

  2. 2015-05-14

    Firefighters respond to a fire at the Savopoulos home and discover the bodies of all four victims; police determine the fire was intentionally set and the deaths were homicides.

  3. 2015-05-21

    Daron Wint is arrested in Northeast Washington, D.C., after DNA on the pizza crust matches him.

  4. 2017-02-03

    Wint's trial date is set, scheduled to begin September 4, 2018.

  5. 2018-09-11

    Opening statements begin in Wint's trial.

  6. 2018-10-25

    Wint is found guilty of 20 counts of kidnapping, extortion, and murder.

  7. 2019-02-01

    Wint is sentenced to four consecutive life terms without parole.

  8. 2020-12

    Wint appeals his conviction, seeking a new trial.

  9. 2022-12-15

    The D.C. Court of Appeals largely affirms Wint's conviction and denies him a new trial.

Best coverage

No approved coverage links are attached yet.

People

  • Amy Clare Savopoulos

    VICTIM

    Wife of Savvas Savopoulos; killed at age 47

    citation on file

  • Philip Savvas Savopoulos

    VICTIM

    Son of Savvas and Amy Savopoulos; killed at age 10, tortured and stabbed

    citation on file

  • Daron Dylon Wint

    CONVICTED

    Former welder at American Iron Works; convicted October 25, 2018 of 20 counts including kidnapping, extortion, and murder; sentenced to four consecutive life terms

    citation on file

  • Veralicia Figueroa

    VICTIM

    Family housekeeper; killed at age 57

    citation on file

  • Savvas Phillip Savopoulos

    VICTIM

    CEO and president of American Iron Works; killed at age 46

    citation on file

Places

Common questions

What happened to the victim?
In May 2015, four people—Savvas and Amy Savopoulos, their 10-year-old son Philip, and housekeeper Veralicia Figueroa—were held captive, tortured for cash, and killed in their Washington, D.C. mansion, which was then set on fire. Former employee Daron Wint was convicted in 2018 of murder, kidnapping, and extortion and sentenced to four consecutive life terms.
Where did the murder happen?
Woodley Park, Washington, D.C.
Who was convicted?
Daron Dylon Wint (Former welder at American Iron Works; convicted October 25, 2018 of 20 counts including kidnapping, extortion, and murder; sentenced to four consecutive life terms).
What is the current status of the case?
Status: solved.

Sources

  1. D.C. mansion murderswikipedia · Wikipedia · 2026-07-07
  2. Savopoulos family thanks law enforcement after arrest in slayingsnews · The Washington Post · 2026-07-07
  3. D.C. house fire, money motive coveragenews · CNN · 2026-07-07