Two Robeson County deputies shot by murder suspect released on bond

A community and law enforcement officials are expressing outrage after a murder suspect out of jail on bail shot two Robeson County deputies while they attempted to serve a warrant.

The shooting happened around 9:30 a.m. at Lois Ann Drive in Maxton, where deputies attempted to serve a warrant on 20-year-old, Shawn Tobin Locklear Jr. Upon arrival, deputies say Locklear Jr. ran into a wooded area. During the pursuit, additional deputies arrived and attempted to apprehend the suspect in the 1100 block of Old Red Springs Road.

When deputies encountered Locklear in the woods, multiple shots were fired at them and two deputies were hit by gunfire. The suspect then entered a deputy's patrol vehicle and drove away from the scene, deputies said. While Locklear was driving away, a deputy was run over by the patrol vehicle. During the encounter, the deputies returned gunfire and Locklear was shot multiple times.

The sheriff’s office said Locklear was out on bond for a 2022 murder charge. According to the sheriff’s office, Locklear had cut off his ankle monitor, prompting the warrant.

"The disgusting part about all of this is he’s out after already committing a felony – an armed robbery – earlier," Robeson County Sheriff Burnis Wilkins said. "To give a bracelet to a murder suspect that’s already out on bond for armed robbery, that’s just unbelievable."

Both deputies were taken to Scotland Medical Center for treatment and later taken to Cape Fear Medical Center for surgery. Their injuries were serious but not life-threatening, the sheriff's office said.

On Wednesday morning, Wilkins said the deputies were alert, talking and in good spirits. Both are expected to make a full recovery.

Deputy Jonathan Walters, 37, was shot in the lower body and is listed in critical but stable condition. He has undergone surgery for injuries to his legs and gunfire wounds.

“It's a sickening feeling. It really is. My heart goes out to him and his family. I've been praying constantly," said Nick Peavy, a friend of Walters.

Peavy, a former deputy says all he could think about was his friend. He said he’s known Walters since high school.

"Jonathan was just doing his job," Peavy said.

The second deputy, Kaelin Locklear, 23, was shot in the upper body and is listed in stable condition. He is being admitted to the Cape Fear Hospital for further evaluation of gunshot wounds to his chest. His condition is currently serious but stable. Although the deputy and suspect share a last name, they are not related.

Shawn Locklear was also apprehended and taken to the hospital with gunshot wounds. He is in critical but stable condition.

Wilkins said Shawn Locklear made bond for a robbery committed in March of 2022 and was released in May 2023 for the November 2022 first-degree murder charges. He was one of three arrested after a Red Springs man was found dead in a ditch on Nov. 29, 2022.

A warrant was issued Sept. 28, for the arrest of the suspect who violated pre-trial release conditions by removing his ankle bracelet. He is also facing charges for assaulting a female and pointing a gun.

Shawn Locklear was previously arrested on March 20, 2022, for robbery with a dangerous weapon, felony fleeing/eluding law enforcement, damage to personal property and possessing fake registration plates. He was granted bail on the same day.

Shawn Locklear was also out on bail for serious charges stemming from a November 29, 2022, murder, including first-degree murder, robbery with a dangerous weapon, felony conspiracy and discharging a weapon into an occupied property. He was released on bond on May 5, 2023.

"I'm not only disgusted," Wilkins said. "Talk to the residents on this road that are disgusted."

Judge Angelica Chavis McIntyre, who granted Locklear bond on his murder charge released the following statement saying:

"Bonds are determined by many factors, including the evidence that is presented in court by the officers, witness cooperation, if a felony report has been provided to the District Attorney’s Office, and the particular facts of every case. I feel the public’s frustration and the Sheriff’s frustration at the crime problem in Robeson County. My judicial record shows that I have set some of the highest bonds ever set in Robeson County based on the evidence before me and consistent with the law."

McIntyre also says after the dates of these proceedings in this case, she is grateful that North Carolina law changed effective October 1, 2023, to allow district court judges additional authority to deny bond to violent and repeat offenders as well as those on pretrial release who commit a new offense.

Wilkins expressed his frustration and outrage at the chain of events that took place Tuesday afternoon.

“I am as frustrated as I have ever been,” Wilkins said. “We continue to pray that we don’t lose either of these deputies due to the actions of a suspect who clearly has shown he is a dangerous criminal.

“For a murder suspect to be out roaming the streets of our county under the pretense of being on Pre-trial release is a travesty. District Attorney Matt Scott and his office, along with pre-trial representatives, were against his release, and somehow, it still occurred. This man should have been in jail. We continue to do our jobs, and I need the courts to do theirs.”

Upon the release of suspect from the medical center, he will be charged with the additional charges of:

• Two counts of attempted first-degree murder
• Two counts assault with a deadly weapon inflicting serious injuries with intent to kill
• Larceny of motor vehicle,
• Felony hit and run
• Possession of a weapon of mass destruction,
• Possession of a cocaine
• Felony possession of marijuana
• Two counts of resist, delay and obstructing of a public officer.

The State Bureau of Investigation is currently handling the investigation.