Victim dies after late night shooting in Henderson, police say

Police were called around 11 p.m. to a home in the 400 block of Merriman Street, where they found the victims, both of whom had been shot while they were in a car, authorities said.

Darrion Richardson, 23, was rushed for medical treatment to a local hospital, where he died, police said in a written statement. The second victim was being treated for their injuries, but police did not identify that person or provide any information about their condition.

Police: Two killed in Henderson shooting

Police said the incident was under investigation.

"We are currently gathering information and investigating this incident in conjunction with the North Carolina State Bureau of Investigation," the police statement said. "We urge members of our community to come forth with any information that may lead to the arrest of the individual(s) responsible for this crime."

Authorities cordoned off the home with crime scene tape as police investigated the crime. A motive for the shootings was unknown.

The latest shooting has prompted Mayor Eddie Ellington to ask Gov. Roy Cooper for additional resources to help stem the deadly tide of violence that has gripped the city.

"We have a problem here and I know it can be fixed and we're just going to step up and make sure that this stops," Ellington said.

Ellington told WRAL News Wednesday that he has requested additional resources from the state, although it was not immediately clear if that would mean more money or state officers added to patrol the city.

Henderson has grappled in recent days with a string of shootings, some of them fatal.

On March 15, two people were killed and a third was wounded during a shooting at a home at 227 Harrell Street. In that incident, Tyheem Shabazz Person, 27, and Dyrel Jermal Kittrell, 28, were fatally shot during a dispute, and Devonte Jamal Jones, 21, was taken to a nearby hospital for treatment. He died a few days later at a local hospital.

The week before that, Emmanuel Hargrove, 31, was shot and killed on Parham Road. On Saturday, an unidentified 14-year-old was found shot to death on Pinkston Street.

In all of the cases, authorities said only one arrest has been made. Ellington said he hopes state officers will help with the situation.

"We were asking for reinforcement, task force and whatever we can to help our officers because we're really short-staffed right now," he said. "We are 13 officers down, out of 59 and they got over 30,000 calls last year and it's hard to be proactive when you're receiving all of these calls. It really puts a strain."

Anyone with information was asked to call Henderson police at 252-438-4141 or Crime Stoppers at 252-492-1925.

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