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SC man wanted for murder in Durham arrested after second killing, sheriff's office says

A Durham man wanted on a murder charge in North Carolina was arrested in South Carolina after being accused of killing a second person in Florence County.

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Willie James Smith
FLORENCE, S.C. — A South Carolina man wanted on a murder charge in North Carolina was arrested in South Carolina after being accused of killing a second person in Florence County.

The Durham Police Department charged Willie James Smith Jr., 53, with first-degree murder in connection to the March shooting death of 62-year-old Hironori James.

Police have not released any information about a possible motive in James' killing.

Smith was arrested by the Florence County Sheriff's Office on Thursday on charges connected to a deadly stabbing, according to authorities.

WMBF News reports the man killed was identified as James Stephen McNamara, 61.

The two were staying in the same room together at the Florence Express Inn, according to the sheriff's office.

Smith awaits a bond hearing in South Carolina with a circuit court judge, WMBF reports. It's unclear when he would be brought to North Carolina.

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