Murder victim identified
By John Joyce
Published in News on November 2, 2014 1:50 AM
A 21-year-old Goldsboro woman killed early Friday morning when an unidentified group of shooters opened fire on a minivan on Sixth Street has been identified.
Shanekqua Adriana Thompson of 109 N. Herman St. was found dead inside the Chrysler Town and Country sedan, riddled with bullets, that ran through the T-intersection at Sixth and Humphrey streets and came to rest with its front end off the road in a stand of trees.
Authorities said they believe there were more people in the car, but that they fled the scene.
"There are indicators there were more people inside the vehicle that ran," Maj. Al King said.
Shell casings of various caliber littered all of Sixth Street from Wayne Memorial Drive down to Humphrey Street Friday morning after shots rang out shortly after 3 a.m.
The trail of spent casings leading to the van continued down Humphrey Street past Fifth Street nearly all the way to Fourth Street.
The number of shells recovered -- more than 20 and possibly more than 30 -- has yet to be confirmed.
"All it tells us for certain is that there were multiple weapons. Putting which weapon in whose hand is near impossible unless somebody tells us." King said.
Therein lies the problem. No one is talking, investigators said.
"The best way to know what happened is for someone to sit across the table from you and say, 'this is what I saw,' from A to Z," King said.
Without that, investigators have to rely on physical evidence alone.
"It is a pretty dirty road, so if you have shell casings that are above the dirt that haven't been stepped on or driven over, it's pretty clear those belong to our shooters," King said.
Meanwhile, investigators continue to search for the people who made it out of the van alive, and for the person or persons who opened fire on them early Friday morning.
Mrs. Thompson is believed to have been a passenger in the van and was likely not the intended target, King said.
Police have no suspects, but are following some "very strong leads," King said.
Crime scene investigators worked throughout the day Friday processing possible evidence.
Numbered markers were placed around each shell casing and an orange Bic lighter. Each bullet hole in the van was marked with a sticker.
Tire marks leading down Sixth Street to where the vehicle came to rest remained visible.
"You don't want to assume you know what happened at the beginning. All that is going to do is cloud your investigation," King said.
All police know for certain is that multiple weapons were used in the attack that left Ms. Thompson dead and left a community asking why.
Residents not connected to the shooting should not be overly concerned for their safety, King said.
"We are concerned about the increase in violence. Very concerned. But these are not random acts against the citizens of Wayne County," King said.
The recent shootings -- including shots fired from a moving vehicle at another car on Elm Street in September, a shooting of the Waffle House and McDonald's at Wayne Memorial Drive just recently, and Friday's murder -- have more to do with an ongoing "beef" between people willing to shoot at each other, he said.
"We don't want citizens concerned that they can't leave their homes," he added.
Goldsboro Police Chief Jeff Stewart spoke briefly on the matter by telephone late Friday afternoon.
When asked about the investigation, Stewart simply said it was "ongoing."
When asked if the community ought to be concerned, or if he was, about the recent number of brazen shootings in public areas of the community, Stewart said, "We are aware of the situation and we're working on it."