Criminal Details

The Elba Clipper
March 4, 2010

A national crime assessment organization has decided to review the nearly five-year-old unsolved shooting death of Perry Griffin at a Dothan business.

Richard Walter spoke to media on Tuesday afternoon at the Dothan Police Department about how the Griffin murder will be reviewed by the Vidocq Society, a national organization that reviews cold case crimes, including murders.

“I’m involved in crime assessment,” said Walter, who’s a forensic profiler and co-founder of the society. “Criminals make mistakes, and we’re here to capitalize on those mistakes.”

Two masked men shot 37-year-old Griffin to death as he prepared to go on a business trip for Panhandle Converter Recycling on June 26, 2007.

Dothan Police Lt. Tony Luker, the supervisor of the criminal investigation division (CID), said Griffin was shot during a robbery at the business. Luker said the department sought the help of the society to get a fresh perspective on the Griffin murder investigation.

“We will do anything we can to solve this murder,” Luker said. “Mr. Walter and the Vidocq Society are the top people in their field.”

Walter said the organization typically flies in two detectives to Philadelphia. They then give a detailed presentation on their homicide investigation before the society makes a determination whether to review the case.

“We try to reactivate the case,” Walter said.

Walter said only 27 percent of all criminal cases that go to trial nationwide include physical evidence such as fingerprints and DNA. While in contrast he said 73 percent of criminal cases include circumstantial evidence.

“Many high profile cases are circumstantial cases,” Walter said.

Walter said he’s helping the department free of charge.

“Hopefully they’ll know more when I leave,” Walter said. “I don’t think murder is a recreational game. We’re here to validate human beings, and this is one way we can do it.”

On the day he was killed, Griffin arrived at the company’s North Beverlye Road property around 3 a.m. to make a trip to Mississippi for scrap metal purchases. One of two gunmen shot Griffin to death after he had exited the company truck to close a gate on the property. Police analyzed footage from video surveillance on the property and found both gunmen wore what appeared to be Halloween style masks during the robbery.

Griffin worked about two years as a manager for the company.

Police have said a $30,000 Crime Stoppers reward has been offered for information leading to an arrest in the Griffin murder.

Luker said hopefully an arrest in the Griffin murder will help give the family some closure and healing.

“For that particular person that’s murdered, we are their last voice,” Luker said.

Anyone with information can call the Dothan Police Department at 615-3000 or Crime Stoppers at 793-7000.

ODMP.org
March 1, 2013

There may be new hope in the four and half year old murder case of Dothan businessman Perry Griffin.

At a Tuesday news conference, Dothan Police said there is a forensic profiler from out of state in town for a few days, helping with the case. They hope he will bring new expertise to this baffling crime.

His murder was caught on camera but four and half years later — police haven’t found Perry Griffin’s killers. The 37 year old manager of Panhandle Converter and Scrap Co. was leaving the Beverley road business before dawn on June 26, 2007 headed to Mississippi on business with tens of thousands of dollars in cash. He was robbed in the parking lot by two masked men and shot to death. But forensic profile expert Richard Walter says these criminals didn’t think everything through. He says he already sees mistakes on the part of the killers and that will eventually help identify them.

Walter is with VIDOCQ — an elite society based in Pennsylvania that works to solve cold cases. The organization is very selective about the cases they take on and Walter says when they were contacted by angel house about the griffin case, they were interested in helping.

Dothan Police Lt. Tony Luker said VIDOCQ and Walter are known as some of the best in the field of cracking cold cases. Walter came to Dothan hoping to build a profile of the killers that will help police find them.

This isn’t the first time the Griffin case has drawn national attention. ‘America’s Most Wanted’ featured the case months after Perry was killed.

Griffin’s father told WDHN in a 2011 interview that Police are doing all they can but the lack of viable leads in the case has been frustrating. But Walter says he’ll give investigators insight that could finally solve this case saying, “my advice to the perpetrators is to not buy any green bananas.”

Crime Stoppers is offering a large reward to anyone who comes forward with information leading to an arrest. Their number is 793-7000.