Cox is scheduled to be sentenced Dec. 4.
He was accused of fatally shooting 28-year-old Jeffrey James Allen III of Dayton and shooting and wounding another worker on May 18, 2023, at the DMAX plant at 3100 Dryden Road. Allen was pronounced dead at the scene and the other man suffered a gunshot to the foot.
Credit: Montgomery County Jail
Credit: Montgomery County Jail
The Moraine Police Division was inundated just before 9 p.m. by 911 calls about an active workplace shooter at the General Motors subsidiary that manufactures Duramax turbo-diesel engines for heavy-duty GMC Sierra and heavy-duty Chevrolet Silverado pickup trucks in addition to work trucks for military, marine and medium-duty use, according to the company’s website.
As one of the first officers crested a nearby hill in his cruiser, “he could see an entire factory full of employees pouring out the doors into a loading dock area, running, frantic, panicked. An almost surreal chaotic scene from some Hollywood movie,” Moraine police Chief Craig Richardson said last October when awarding four Moraine officers with the division’s Medal of Valor, its highest honor, for their actions.
“They knew they could not afford to wait on a SWAT team or tactical equipment,” Richardson said. “They ran in with the equipment on their belts, not knowing how many shooters (there were), or where the shooter was or what horrors they would see inside. They moved together as a team, one cohesive unit, working their way through the maze of manufacturing equipment and continued their drive towards the suspect.”
The two shooting victims were found inside, and Cox was found outside after he exited the building through the same doors as fleeing workers, which led a fenced-in security area. Hundreds of people were trapped with Cox as officers converged, the chief said.
“What was already a horrible incident could have very quickly become incredibly more devastating,” Richardson said.
Cox shot himself in the head in an unsuccessful attempt to take his life. He was critically injured and taken to Miami Valley Hospital and eventually recovered.
Investigators determined Cox and Allen had been feuding over a woman.
“We’ve been able to confirm that both the suspect and Mr. Allen were apparently involved in a domestic related feud over a female who was also an employee of the facility,” Moraine police Sgt. Andrew Parish said previously. “During the altercation between the two males … the suspect produced a semiautomatic handgun and shot and killed Mr. Allen.”
Credit: Jim Noelker
Credit: Jim Noelker
Credit: Jeremy P. Kelley
Credit: Jeremy P. Kelley
Cox reportedly fired at least dozen rounds targeting Allen.
The second shooting victim was not involved in the dispute. His girlfriend told the Dayton Daily News that her boyfriend was near where the shooting happened. “He thought it was over. He thought he was about to lose his life,” she said.
DMAX suspended production for several days following the workplace shooting.
Credit: Jeremy P. Kelley
Credit: Jeremy P. Kelley
Staff writers Eric Schwartzberg and Kristen Spicker contributed to this report.
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