A Montgomery County, Maryland, judge sentenced a man Wednesday to life plus 40 years in prison for killing a man he thought was someone else.
Vaughn Darvel Bellamy, 32, who is currently serving time in connection with an unrelated killing in Prince George’s County, was sentenced to the lengthy prison term for the 2013 home invasion killing of Alexander Buie.
Bellamy and Bryan Byrd, of D.C., were convicted last September for forcing their way into a recovery house on Grenoble Drive in Rockville and killing Buie. Byrd was given a similar sentence last October. A third man pleaded guilty in the case and has not yet been sentenced.
Investigators said the three men went to the group home looking for someone else who had recently moved out.
Following their convictions last year, Montgomery County State’s Attorney John McCarthy called it a case of mistaken identity.
“Alexander Buie was a truly innocent victim,” McCarthy said.
Investigators said the three men had gone to the Rockville group home to rob a man they believed had a large quantity of cash from illegal drug sales.
Buie was residing in the bedroom that had been previously occupied by the trio’s intended target.
