Man pleads guilty in Marine’s downtown Wilmington murder

WILMINGTON, NC (WWAY) — A man charged with stabbing a Marine to death in downtown Wilmington pleaded guilty Tuesday and was sentenced to more than two decades in prison.

Davy Spencer, 47, pleaded guilty in New Hanover County court to second-degree murder, assault with a deadly weapon with intent to kill, and assault with a deadly weapon inflicting serious injury in connection with the death of 21-year-old Marine Daniel Montano.

Montano was stabbed in the neck on April 5 on North Front Street in downtown Wilmington, a crime that left some people afraid to visit the area.

During Tuesday’s court hearing, Montano’s father, Aurelio, his sister Evelyn, and a fellow Marine and friend were present in court, reading victim impact statements and asking the judge to impose the maximum sentence.

Montano’s sister described the unbearable pain of losing her brother and knowing she would never get to watch him grow up.

His father spoke about the permanent loss of being unable to speak to or hold his son again.

“My son is the reason I had enough strength to be here today,” Aurelio Montano told the judge.

The judge sentenced Spencer to 21 to 26 years in prison.

Court records show Spencer has a criminal history dating to the mid-1990s, including felony breaking and entering, drug offenses, and assault. In 2015, he was convicted as a habitual felon and sentenced to at least seven years in prison. He was released in 2021.