Crime and Courts

Man accused of murder on Metro platform could be released due to investigation mistakes

NBC Universal, Inc.

A family is devastated after learning the man who killed their loved one is set to be released from jail soon because of alleged mistakes made in the investigation.

D.C. resident Sean Golden was stabbed on the platform at the Pentagon Metro station almost four years ago — a crime caught on video. But court documents accuse Metro Transit Police of making a series of errors that seriously weakened the case.

Golden was killed March 16, 2020. Police arrested suspect Vincent Wilson a short time later outside the Minnesota Avenue station. They found a 4-inch pocketknife he allegedly tossed under a convenience store shelf. He was charged with second-degree murder.

LaKeitha Golden, the victim’s mother, said at the preliminary hearing, it seemed like the case against Wilson was solid.

“I listened to the medical examiner, I listened to the Metro Transit officer, I listened to the female witness,” she said. “I listened to all of that.”

She also watched the security camera video.

“He used all of his last energy to point out his attacker, and then to collapse in front of the attendant station, it was devastating to watch,” she said.

But just days before a jury trial was set to begin last month, the family learned the prosecutor and Wilson’s defense attorney reached a plea agreement. Wilson would plead guilty to voluntary manslaughter and be released from jail for time served, less than four years.

“When my son told me there’s a possibility of him getting time served, I can’t wrap my head around that,” Golden’s grandmother Charlene Thompson said.

Prosecutors explained there were too many problems with the case to risk a trial and possible acquittal, the family said.

Court documents show prosecutors chiefly put the blame on Metro Transit Police for significant lapses in their investigation.

The assistant commonwealth’s attorney wrote the swab taken to check Wilson’s DNA against the knife was not properly accounted for when it was stored at the evidence facility.

The prosecutor wrote, “This particular investigation is rife with glaring deficiencies — both in the quality of the investigation and subsequent disclosure to the commonwealth.”

A 2021 inspector general report analyzed Metro Transit Police cases from 2010 to 2017 and found thousands of crimes — ranging from robberies to kidnappings — were not properly documented and in some cases were never investigated.

News4 reached out to Metro Transit Police and is waiting for a response.

Wilson’s attorney said he believes his client was defending himself and a manslaughter plea is appropriate. In court filings, he also highlighted other manslaughter cases in which sentences ranged from three to eight years. 

Contact Us