Illinois man sentenced to 75 years in prison for double murder in South Bend
SOUTH BEND — A Sauk Village, Ill., man found guilty in March of the October 2022 gang-related murders at the Waterford Glen Apartments in South Bend was sentenced to 75 years in prison after a bench trial before St. Joseph Superior Court Judge John Marnocha.
On Wednesday, Marnocha sentenced Tyrik Rayford, 24, to a total of 75 years for the Oct. 22, 2020, deaths of Malik Balderos, 21, and Ricky Kinds Jr., 20, both of South Bend.
During a bench trial, Marnocha found Rayford guilty of felony counts of murder and conspiracy to commit murder in addition to a firearm enhancement.
More: Illinois man found guilty of gang-related murders in South Bend
Rayford received 55 years for the murder conviction and 30 years for the conspiracy charge to be served concurrently. With the conviction for the firearm sentencing enhancement, Rayford was sentenced to 20 years to be served consecutively to the murder and conspiracy count, adding up to the 75 years in the Indiana Department of Corrections.
Officials believe the October 2020 shooting of Balderos and Kinds was gang-related, and court documents say the ballistic evidence shows at least eight separate weapons were fired in the murders at the Waterford Glen Apartments. In addition to Rayford, three other men faced criminal charges for the shooting, which was the culmination of a series of events that began with the murder of 16-year-old Frederick Williams on Oct. 17, 2020.
October 2020: Two killed in overnight shooting at South Bend apartment complex
Documents allege Frederick was affiliated with "the West Side" and, during a memorial vigil for Frederick on Oct. 22, 2020, a number of people gathered with weapons where investigators said a person in the group indicated someone was going to "pay for this."
In August 2022, Lance Dawson agreed to a plea deal in the case in exchange for his testimony against Darius Vaughn and Dijon Davis, who had also been charged in the shooting, with aiding, inducing or causing murder and conspiracy to commit murder, as well as a criminal gang sentencing enhancement. Davis also received a firearm sentencing enhancement. Criminal proceedings against Vaughn and Davis are pending.
Email Tribune staff writer Greg Swiercz at gswiercz@sbtinfo.com.
This article originally appeared on South Bend Tribune: Illinois man sentenced for 2020 double-murder at Waterford Glen apartments
