A woman accused of gunning down two Virginia Department of Transportation contractors at a Chesterfield County work site in July was captured Wednesday morning at a home in rural North Carolina, ending a manhunt that stretched across two states for nearly seven weeks. Dennikia Rachelle Boyce, 37, was taken into custody without incident just after 10 a.m. at a residence in the 500 block of House Avenue in Scotland Neck.
According to the U.S. Marshals Service, local police in Scotland Neck had received reports of Boyce's presence in town and tipped off regional task force agents, leading directly to her arrest. As reported by WPXI, Boyce now faces two charges of second-degree murder in Virginia as well as a federal charge of unlawful flight to avoid prosecution.
A Deadly Morning at a Highway Staging Yard
The shooting happened at approximately 9:30 a.m. on July 24 at a VDOT equipment staging area near the intersection of U.S. Route 1 and Virginia State Route 288 in Chesterfield County, a site that sits near a major highway interchange south of Richmond, according to WRIC 8News. Two contract workers, 30-year-old Rai'Shon Eugene DeLarge and 34-year-old Phillip Avery Wilson, were killed. Per WPXI, DeLarge was pronounced dead at the scene while Wilson died later at a local hospital.
Both men were residents of Emporia, Virginia, roughly 60 miles south of the Chesterfield staging yard where they worked, the station's report notes. Public records indicated Boyce also had ties to the Emporia area. WPXI reports DeLarge, of Woodbridge, Virginia, was killed on the weekend of his 5-year-old daughter's birthday.
Domestic Violence Cited, Motive Left Unresolved
The U.S. Marshals Service described the shooting as a case of domestic violence, though officials have not released a detailed statement specifying the relational dynamics involved. Sources familiar with the case told the same outlet that Boyce had been in a romantic relationship with one of the victims that had ended shortly before the shooting, though that detail has not been confirmed in an official law enforcement statement.
DeLarge's family is still grappling with the loss. Keymia Todd, the mother of DeLarge's daughter, and Darlene Wilson, Phillip Wilson's mother, have both spoken publicly about the toll of the case, per WPXI. Darlene Wilson said her son and DeLarge remain absent now that Boyce has been caught, adding that she is angry, hurt and misses her son.
Seven Weeks on the Run Across State Lines
Federal court filings reviewed by WRIC 8News revealed Boyce fled the Chesterfield crime scene in a blue Honda Accord before crossing state lines into eastern North Carolina, with investigators tracking her movement between central Virginia and eastern North Carolina throughout the search. On August 7, the U.S. Marshals Service escalated the case to Major Case status and offered a reward of up to $10,000 for information leading to her capture.
The federal Unlawful Flight to Avoid Prosecution charge Boyce now faces, under 18 U.S.C. § 1073, carries up to five years in federal prison and is what allowed federal marshals to pursue her across state borders, according to the U.S. Department of Justice. Separately, each second-degree murder count under Virginia Code § 18.2-32 carries a mandatory prison term of 5 to 40 years, meaning Boyce could face a cumulative maximum of 80 years in state prison on the two murder charges, per the Virginia Law Code.
A Multi-Agency Manhunt Ends in Halifax County
Capturing Boyce required coordination among the Capital Area Regional Fugitive Task Force, the Carolinas Regional Fugitive Task Force, Virginia State Police, the Halifax Regional Drug and Gang Task Force, and the Scotland Neck Police Department, according to the U.S. Marshals Service, whose Capital Area task force maintains partnership agreements with more than 100 federal, state, and local agencies. Don Snider, commander of the U.S. Marshals Service Capital Area Regional Fugitive Task Force, said violent fugitives cannot escape the reach of the U.S. Marshals Service, per WPXI.
The Halifax Regional Drug and Gang Task Force was contacted by the Scotland Neck Police Department about Boyce's reported presence in town on September 9, one day before her arrest, WPXI reports. Boyce was booked into the Halifax County jail without bond, held on an extradition and fugitive charge from another state.
What Comes Next
The Halifax County Magistrate's Office has issued a formal fugitive order to begin the extradition process, a legal procedure under North Carolina law requiring out-of-state fugitives to undergo formal extradition hearings or execute a waiver before being transported across state lines, according to reporting cited by Boston 25 News. Virginia State Police are working with authorities to extradite Boyce back to Virginia, WPXI reports. Boyce is scheduled to appear in Halifax County court on September 22, where the extradition proceedings will move forward before the case ultimately heads to Chesterfield County for prosecution on the double second-degree murder charges.
