Raleigh police investigating death of 85-year-old as homicide

Raleigh police say the death of a man on June 13 is now being investigated as a homicide.

Posted 7:56 p.m. Jun 24, 2019 — Updated 8:31 p.m. Jun 25, 2019

Jason O. Boyd

, WRAL.com editor

RALEIGH, N.C. — Raleigh police say the death of a man on June 13 is now being investigated as a homicide.

Police said Benjamin Franklin Merritt, 85, was the person they said was found dead on June 13 at 5 p.m. Police were called to the 2200 block of Evers Drive for a welfare check. When officials arrived, they found Merritt dead. No information on the cause of death has been released.

Investigation underway after man found dead during welfare check

Merritt who was originally from Mount Olive served in the Army during the Korean War. He attended St,. Augustine's and North Carolina Central where he got a master's degree in education and counseling that led him to mentor young men for 40 years. He was married for 56 years.

Anyone with information is asked to call Raleigh CrimeStoppers at (919) 834-HELP or visit raleighcrimestoppers.org for text and email reporting options. CrimeStoppers pays cash rewards for anonymous tips that help solve cases.

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