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Murder of Fred Griffis

1987 in Florida1987 murders in the United StatesAmerican police officers killed in the line of dutyCapital murder casesDeaths by firearm in Florida
Deaths by person in FloridaIncidents of violence against menJune 1987 in the United StatesMurder in FloridaPeople murdered in FloridaUse American English from August 2026Use mdy dates from August 2026Violence against men in the United States

The murder of Fred Griffis took place on June 24, 1987, when Griffis, then a West Palm Beach corrections officer, was attacked by two men while escorting an inmate to a dermatologist. During the attack, the two attackers, William Van Poyck (July 4, 1954 – June 12, 2013) and Frank Valdes (also spelt Frank Valdez; October 28, 1962 – July 17, 1999), shot and killed Griffis, a crime for which they were found guilty and sentenced to death between 1988 and 1990. Valdes was killed in prison on July 17, 1999, while Van Poyck remained on death row for close to three decades until he was executed by lethal injection on June 12, 2013.

Excerpt from the Wikipedia article Murder of Fred Griffis (License: CC BY-SA 3.0, Authors).

Murder of Fred Griffis
North Olive Avenue, West Palm Beach

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N 26.72405 ° E -80.051495 °
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North Olive Avenue 1272
33401 West Palm Beach
Florida, United States
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