Del. Kelly Convirs-Fowler says she will not voluntarily give police mystery laptop found in mass shooter’s home

A fight is brewing over who should have possession of a laptop computer recovered from the home of the gunman who carried out the 2019 Virginia Beach mass shooting.

The state delegate who claims she has possession of the laptop said she will not voluntarily turn over the computer to Virginia Beach police. The discovery of the laptop, should it prove to be authentic, represents a major lapse in the investigation into the shooting, which has been roundly criticized by city employees and family members of the victims in the years since, Del. Kelly Convirs-Fowler said.

“I’m willing to hand this thing over but not to the entities that missed it to begin with,” Convirs-Fowler said in an interview Wednesday. “For whatever reason they missed it, whether we’re talking about dereliction of duty or we’re talking about some bigger conspiracy, or we’re just talking about ineptness or whatever, I think we deserve to know how this was missed.”

Meanwhile, an attorney representing at least four families who lost loved ones in the May 31, 2019, shooting argues the laptop should be returned to the woman who took possession of the gunman’s home and initially recovered it.

“The laptop is really a symbol, right now, for the fact that the truth has not been told to the public, there has not been transparency, and most importantly these families have not been made whole and that has to change right now,” said attorney and former Lt. Governor Justin Fairfax.

The FBI and Virginia Beach Police Department have said the agencies never located, seized or were aware of the existence of a personal laptop belonging to the shooter. After Convirs-Fowler issued a news release this week indicating she received a laptop she believes belonged to the gunman, the police department requested she turn it over to investigators “so that a complete forensic review can be conducted to determine the device’s authenticity and relevance.”

“I know they want to verify it, I understand that, but let that go through my attorney and go through a process everybody feels comfortable with,” Convirs-Fowler said.

Disgruntled city employee DeWayne Craddock went on a rampage at the Virginia Beach Municipal Center, fatally shooting 12 people before he was killed by police.

The Virginian-Pilot has not been able to independently verify whether the laptop belonged to the gunman. However, Convirs-Fowler said it was found in the gunman’s former home when the woman who now owns the condominium went to clear out items left behind.

Debbie Borato won a $2 million judgement against the executor of Craddock’s estate in a lawsuit alleging the wrongful death of her sister, shooting victim Missy Langer. Craddock’s next of kin signed the condo over to her on June 15, 2022. Fairfax said in an interview that since Borato obtained the condo, she owned everything inside it, including the laptop.

“No one has given a justification as to why you would withhold that property, that laptop and the truths contained in there, from the sister of someone who was murdered May 31, 2019 — and from all of these families,” Fairfax said.

Fairfax declined to comment on what Borato would do with the laptop. Fairfax added that he has have a copy of its contents, but Borato wants possession of the original laptop as well.

Convirs-Fowler believes the laptop is her property because it was given to her by Beth Mann, who said Borato gave it to her as she prepared to throw away or donate Craddock’s property left in the condo before selling it.

In an interview with The Pilot, Convirs-Fowler described how she was able to access the computer and its files.

Convirs-Fowler said she was able to bypass the computer’s password and review its stored files as an “amateur.” She said she bypassed the password by rebooting the computer and putting it in safe mode, a function that launches a computer’s operating system with a limited amount of its usual software to help with troubleshooting.

One of the profiles on the opening screen was entitled “dewayne” and inside, there were what she believed to be family photos, a personal expense report showing a $1,000 purchase for a Ruger AR-556 firearm, and plans for a trip to Las Vegas set for October 2019, Convirs-Fowler said. The delegate took photos of the files and shared them with the Pilot.

The expense report had last been accessed on May 7, 2019, the pictures indicate. The shooting occurred three weeks later.

In the meantime, the delegate’s attorney is trying to involve the Department of Justice under the belief that the agency would be able to provide the appropriate oversight. Convirs-Fowler said her attorney has been contacted by multiple other attorneys to discuss the laptop, including Fairfax.

The police department’s report on the investigation, released in March 2021, specifically states “neither the FBI nor the Virginia Beach Police Department located or seized a laptop computer belonging to the shooter. Neither agency is aware of the existence of a personal laptop or desktop computer belonging to the shooter.”

Convirs-Fowler said this statement was a reference to reports by family members of victims and multiple employees at the time who reported seeing Craddock with a personal laptop at their office.

A Virginia Beach police spokesperson was unable to verify whether the department had reached out to Convirs-Fowler’s attorney to discuss turning over the laptop. The attorney could not be reached for comment Wednesday.

David Cariens, a member of the Virginia Beach Mass Shooting Commission, expects the issue will be discussed at the group’s next meeting on Jan. 11.

”I can’t imagine it won’t be on the agenda, but stranger things than that have happened,” he said.

Cariens said he hopes the commission will have the opportunity to examine the device.

”It may be a gold mine of information and evidence,” he said.

Ryant Washington, the commission’s chairman, said he has not spoken to Convirs-Fowler about the laptop and learned about the situation from news reports.

”We are waiting to see what the next step will be from Del. Convirs-Fowler,” he said. ”We are engaged and interested in knowing if there’s any information that could be relevant to what we are trying to accomplish.”

Gavin Stone, 757-712-4806, gavin.stone@virginiamedia.com

Katie King contributed to this report.