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Autopsy: Man found in burning house had been shot

A Spring Lake man whose body was found inside his burning home in May had been shot, according to an autopsy report released Tuesday.

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Harnett fire, suspicious death
SPRING LAKE, N.C. — A Spring Lake man whose body was found inside his burning home in May had been shot, according to an autopsy report released Tuesday.

Firefighters were battling a small fire at 30 Appaloosa Drive, off N.C. Highway 210, on May 6 when they found the body of 49-year-old William Frank Smith Jr.

A medical examiner determined that Smith died from a close-range gunshot wound to the chest, according to the autopsy report. A dog also found dead inside the home had been stabbed in the neck, the medical examiner said.

Pressley Parks, 26, has been charged with first-degree murder in the case and remains in the Harnett County Detention Center without bond.

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