Fight leads to stabbings, murder
By Lee Williams
Published in News on March 9, 2007 1:54 PM
MOUNT OLIVE -- A Mount Olive man is being held at the Wayne County Jail without bond in connection with a double stabbing on Flowers Road that left one man dead and another seriously injured this morning.
Terreakus A. Davis, 23, of 137 Flowers Road, is being held on one count of murder and a felony assault charge for allegedly murdering Deon Blake Graham, 29, and injuring his brother, Donald Wayne Graham, 27, during a fight that broke out at the victims' home.
Wayne County sheriff's deputies responded to 156 Flowers Road at about 12:30 a.m. after receiving a call about a shooting or stabbing at the residence, Wayne County Sheriff's Capt. Tom Effler said.
Upon arrival, deputies found Deon Graham's body lying in the carport at his home and Donald Graham with serious injuries, Effler said.
Donald Graham was taken to Wayne Memorial Hospital and later transferred to Pitt County Memorial Hospital in Greenville. He was listed in stable condition, Wayne County Sheriff Carey Winders said.
Detectives responded to the small brick home that had two pickup trucks and one car parked outside. They cordoned off the home with yellow crime scene tape and spent more than four hours taking photographs, collecting evidence and interviewing possible witnesses and neighbors.
Their inquiry led to Davis, a convicted felon, as a primary suspect. He was taken to the Wayne County Jail for questioning and later arrested after officials determined that they had their suspect.
Winders said an argument between the victims and Davis allegedly prompted the attacks.
"Davis had been at the residence earlier and had been told to leave by the deceased," Winders said. "Davis reportedly returned to the residence a short time later and an altercation occurred."
Both of the victims were stabbed. However, an autopsy will be conducted at the state medical examiner's office in Chapel Hill to determine Deon Graham's exact cause of death, Winders said.
Minutes before the murder, an unknown assailant opened fire on Davis' home. Bullets shattered the windows and damaged the bedroom and bathroom walls. Davis lived at the home with his mother, Francis Davis, 49. No injuries were reported in that case.
Effler said detectives are also investigating that case and added that the two incidents could be linked.
Friday's murder is the fifth murder in the county this year. Three have been reported in unincorporated Wayne County; one in the city of Goldsboro and one in the city of Mount Olive.