Man sentenced for fatally shooting his mother while she was recovering from surgery
10/08/2025 11:36 am PDT
FORSYTH COUNTY, N.C. (TCN) -- A man will spend decades behind bars for killing his 65-year-old mother in her home and initially claiming it was a break-in.
The Forsyth County District Attorney's Office announced Oct. 7 that Donald Fink pleaded guilty to second-degree murder in connection with the death of his mother, Debra Fink. A judge sentenced him to 345 to 426 months, or around 28.75 to 35.5 years, in prison.
According to prosecutors, on June 12, 2023, Kernersville Police responded to a report of a shooting and possible break-in. At the scene, officers discovered Debra Fink suffering from a gunshot wound to her face. The defendant, who was at the residence, reportedly said someone had broken in and shot his mother.
Detectives recovered a gun and an extended magazine on the floor. Authorities said the weapon was the same firearm the victim had reported stolen months prior.
According to the district attorney's office, witnesses said they saw Donald Fink with the gun after the shooting, and he had it earlier in the day and aimed it at another woman. Prosecutors said the defendant "made multiple inconsistent statements regarding his actions and whereabouts at the time of the gunshot that killed his mother."
Several days after his mother's death, Fink reportedly told detectives that his earlier statements were not true, and he admitted that he "manipulated the crime scene by kicking the door and falsifying a story about a break-in on his 911 call." Fink claimed the shooting was an accident, but the district attorney's office said "his story was inconsistent with the physical evidence."
The victim had reportedly been "recovering from a major knee surgery and was unable to stand or walk without assistance" at the time of the shooting. According to prosecutors, witnesses said she was "afraid of her son" and that he had "previously stolen money from her, that he had threatened her, and had talked about shooting her in the past."
Investigators found the defendant's DNA on the gun that was used to kill her, as well as the magazine, and his hands contained gunshot residue.
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