A federal jury has convicted 26-year-old Laurinburg resident Kenneth Maurice Quick Jr. on eight federal charges, including first-degree murder, drug conspiracy, and obstruction of justice, following a trial in the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of North Carolina.
The conviction connects Quick to the targeted killings of two men, Master Sergeant William LaVigne and Army veteran Timothy Dumas, during a drug transaction that ended on the grounds of Fort Bragg. The bodies of William LaVigne and Timothy Dumas were discovered near a military training area on December 2, 2020. Quick faces a mandatory life sentence without the possibility of parole when he is formally sentenced in August 2026.
Federal prosecutors established that the incident began when Quick arranged to purchase cocaine from William LaVigne, though investigators proved he never intended to pay for the narcotics. Timothy Dumas, who had supplied the cocaine to William LaVigne, joined him on the trip to complete the sale to Quick. Upon their arrival, Quick led William LaVigne into a Laurinburg trap house and shot him five times in the back.
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Following the initial shooting, Timothy Dumas agreed to assist Quick in transporting and disposing of William LaVigne’s body in a wooded, rural area of Fort Bragg in an effort to save his own life. However, the plan fell apart when the truck they were driving bottomed out and became immobilized in the sand. At that point, Quick turned on Timothy Dumas, shooting him once in the head and once in the back.
Evidence presented at trial showed that Quick then contacted outside associates to coordinate his escape from the military installation. The following day, Quick and his co-conspirators tracked down Timothy Dumas’s stalled truck, ransacked it, moved it, and set the vehicle on fire to destroy evidence.
The prosecution also brought forward evidence of witness tampering prior to the trial. While in custody, Quick passed notes containing the exact, letter-by-letter spellings of two potential witnesses against him, discussing the “work” that needed to be done to them. Later, when Quick’s mother informed him during a conversation that one of those witnesses had been killed, Quick replied, “Damn, you don’t know how happy that makes me feel.”
The investigation was spearheaded by the Federal Bureau of Investigation alongside the United States Army Criminal Investigation Division.
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“This verdict ensures that North Carolina is a safer place,” said U.S. Attorney Ellis Boyle following the conviction. “A killer will spend the rest of his life behind bars. Despite fantastical claims in media accounts, this jury heard the actual facts and determined the truth of what happened. The victims and their families obtained a measure of justice, but the wounds will never be truly healed.”
Reid Davis, the FBI Special Agent in Charge in North Carolina, also released a statement regarding the verdict and the joint law enforcement effort.
“Quick likely believed he got away with killing two men and discharging their bodies on Fort Bragg property without a second thought,” Davis said. “He clearly didn’t consider the dedication and expertise of the FBI Special Agents who, working with our partners from the United States Army Criminal Investigation Division, followed the evidence and put together a meticulous timeline of his crimes. The verdict, guilty on all eight federal counts related to murder, drugs, illegal firearms, and obstruction tells the story. The FBI and our law enforcement partners will make certain violent criminals are always held accountable.”
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