Murder charges leveled

A little over a month after two Sampson County brothers were shot and killed in the parking lot of a Roseboro apartment complex, a suspect has been jailed in connection with their murders.

According to Sampson Sheriff’s reports, 24-year-old Elijah Tushawn Davis, of 229 Brantwood Court, Roseboro was taken into custody Wednesday afternoon and jailed without privilege of bond in connection with the Oct. 27 shooting at the apartments.

Among the laundry list of charges Davis is facing are two counts of murder in connection with the shooting deaths of Frederick Dixon, 46, of 401 N. Pine St., Roseboro, and Leo Dixon, 40, of 74 Pitchfork Lane, Salemburg.

Sheriff’s Capt. Marcus Smith said an ongoing investigation into the shootings led officers to Davis as a suspect.

“We were able to tie our investigation back to him, and officers obtained warrants based on the information we collected during our investigation,” Smith said Friday.

Sheriff’s officers, Smith said, had been unable to locate Davis since obtaining the warrants, so they contacted the U.S. Marshals Service earlier in the month for assistance.

On Wednesday, marshals contacted the Sheriff’s Department, notifying officers that Davis had been located in Greenville.

Smith said two local detectives went to Pitt County Wednesday and picked Davis up, lodging the charges against him at that time.

Mary Dixon, mother of the two men killed, said Friday afternoon she was thankful an arrest had been made, and she offered gratitude to law enforcement for how quickly they developed and arrested a suspect.

“They were on it from the time it happened,” Dixon attested. “I really want to thank the officers and detectives for all they did to handle this. They did an excellent job. I’m just glad they made an arrest”

Dixon said officers had treated her with respect from day one, and had worked diligently to solve the case. “I can’t say enough about how good they’ve been,” she asserted.

The mother said she remained distraught over her sons’ death. “I’m not really doing good at all; I lost both my sons. It’s just a terrible, terrible tragedy, and it hurts.”

But she also sees beyond her grief to the larger community problem her sons’ death has illuminated — serious problems at Brantwood Court.

“Something’s got to be done out there at Brantwood,” the grieving mother stressed. “Those officers and detectives, they’re like me, they want to see it cleaned up. It needs to be cleaned up before something else bad happens like what happened to my boys.

“You’ve got older people living out there, good people, who are terrified to leave their homes, and that’s just not right. It’s terrible.”

The Dixon brothers were found dead in the early morning hours of Oct. 27 after rescue and law enforcement officers were called to Brantwood Court apartments in reference to shots fired.

When deputies arrived, they found two male victims in the parking lot, both suffering from “obvious gunshot wounds.” Officers, Smith said, began lifesaving measures on both men until paramedics could arrive, but were unsuccessful in their attempts.

The men were later identified as the Dixon brothers.

Smith declined comment in October on whether a weapon was found at the scene, pointing to the ongoing investigation as the reason not to provide specifics in the case.

Along with the two murder charges leveled against Davis in connection with the case is one count of possession of a firearm by a felon.

In addition to the most recent cases, orders for arrest were also issued against the suspect for outstanding Sampson warrants that include identity theft, carrying a concealed weapon and several traffic violations. His bond on the OFAs was set at $55,000.