Dover man shot woman in head while she was sleeping, according to court documents

Brittany Horn | The News Journal

A 21-year-old Dover man admitted to shooting a woman in the head while she was sleeping inside a Dover motel room Thursday morning, according to court documents obtained by The News Journal.

Darren Weiford told city police officers arriving at the First State Inn Motel along North Du Pont Highway on Thursday morning to arrest him, according to court documents. After he was in police custody, he then pointed inside the motel room, where police found 20-year-old Amber Buckler dead from a single gunshot wound, according to court documents.

A Ruger 9mm handgun was found on the bed and later determined to belong to Weiford, according to court documents. A 911 call saying police were needed at the motel first drew officers to the scene.

Police read Weiford his Miranda rights, but he agreed to speak with police anyway, according to court documents.

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He then "admitted to shooting the victim in the head in order (to) intentionally cause her death while she was sleeping," according to court documents.

Mark Hoffman, a spokesman for the Police Department, said Thursday that the shooting was believed to be "an isolated incident that is possibly domestic related."

Weiford was arrested at the scene and has been charged with first-degree murder and possession of a firearm during the commission of a felony.

He is being held at Vaughn Correctional Center near Smyrna on $1,180,000 cash bail.

Contact Brittany Horn at (302) 324-2771 or bhorn@delawareonline.com. Follow her on Twitter at @brittanyhorn.