Charlotte Homicide No. 75

Charloot’s latest homicide vic has been identified as Franklin Rodriguez-Alfaro, 23

Charlotte, N.C. – (Thursday, September 12, 2024) – Detectives with the Charlotte-Mecklenburg Police Department’s Homicide Unit are conducting a homicide investigation in the 1000 block of Timber Lake Drive in the Hickory Grove Division.

On Thursday, September 12, shortly before 10:30 p.m., officers responded to a shots fired call for service in the 1000 block of Timber Lake Drive. Upon arrival, officers discovered a male victim with multiple gunshot wounds and pronounced the victim deceased on scene.

Homicide Unit detectives responded to the scene to conduct an investigation, and Crime Scene Search responded to process the scene and collect physical evidence. Representatives from CMPD’s Operations Command, Victim Services, CFD and MEDIC also assisted.

Rodriguez-Alfaro had more than 50 weapons and robbery charges pending at this time last year. According to sources those cases were dismissed by the Mecklenburg County DA Spencer Merriweather.

Unfortunately he had been released from jail on a reduced bond a year ago.

Just a reminder that incarceration saves lives!

Another Teen Homicide Victim Anthony Smith, Age 15

On September 4, 2024, the family of Anthony Smith, age 15, reported him missing. The CMPD’s Missing Persons Unit began an exhaustive search for Anthony Smith. 

Anthony Smith Age 15

On September 10, 2024, the Missing Persons Unit responded to the 600 block of Silverleaf Road in the Steele Creek Division as part of the investigation, where they located human remains. CMPD’s Homicide Unit responded to investigate, and the remains were transported to the North Carolina Medical Examiner’s Office. 

On September 11, 2024, the remains were positively identified as those belonging to Anthony Smith.  The N.C. Medical Examiner’s Office determined Anthony Smith died from a gunshot wound and ruled his death a homicide.23rd murder victim under the age of 20 shot to death in the last 12 months.

The sad list of other victims under 20:

Aryan Jaswal, age 17

Savion Rashaad Lockhart, age 17

(19-year-old Reginald Marsaeus Moses and an unnamed 17-year-old were charged with his murder those charges were later dropped by the Mecklenburg District Attorney's Office.)

Caleb Thompson, age 18

J’Karri Anderson, age 19

Quaveon Jeremiah Robinson, age 19

Lawahon Dwight Hutchinson, age 19

Johnie McClendon, age 14

Jah’Zir Elijah Jackson, age 18

Lonnie Mcconico Jr, age 18

Tzion Dae, age 16

Amir Kidd, age 15

Avyon Thomas, age 17

Daikwan Jedarren Deese, age 17

Melakah Corbette, age 17

Carter Jimenez, age 3

Jorden Anthony Wood, age 17

Fate Brannon, age 17

Kaleb L. Brown, age 17

Jonathan Miller, age 14

Belian Garcia Mejia, age 18

Marquez Alexander Summers, age 19

Rashaka Prince, age 18

Anthony Smith,  Age 15

Jaiden De’Shon "Tank" Harris, age 16

Chauncory Farmer, age 19

9/11 H & L 118

There are 100s of iconic photos from 9/11 but this one remains forever as the image that haunts me. 

Ladder Company 118 crossing the Brooklyn Bridge. As these six courageous firefighters navigated their truck across the Brooklyn Bridge, they did not know that they were en route to what would become the most infamous tragedy in American history. 

The final sighting of these heros was as they ascended a staircase in the Marriott Hotel near the World Trade Center, endeavoring to find survivors amid the terrorist attacks on September 11. 

Less than an hour following this moment, the South Tower fell, severing the 22-story Marriott in half and claiming the lives of firefighters; Vernon Cherry, Leon Smith, Joey Agnello, Robert Regan, Pete Vega, and Scott Davidson.

The photo Aaron McLamb took of Ladder 118 racing toward the Twin Towers.

Footnote: Scott Davidson is the father of actor comedian and SNL alumni Pete Davidson. 

Cedar Bonus:

In my desk drawer there is a fax I received on September 14, 2001. It details one man's escape from ground zero and that same Marriott hotel on this September 11th morning. A morning much like today. 

The fact that  I won't, maybe can't discard it, is perhaps one of those indications that now more than two decades later I've still not recovered. 

9/11 September 11, 2001 One Man's Story

MCSO Mistakenly Turns Lose Illegals Only To Rearrest Them 3 Days Later

Local television news is reporting:

Two illegal immigrants were mistakenly released from the Mecklenburg County jail after being charged with accessory to first-degree murder.

The Mecklenburg County Sheriff’s Office said both of the suspects were re-arrested on Monday, and blamed their release on missing paperwork.

According to the MCSO, Jose Rivera-Martinez and Reyna Ulloa-Martinez were transferred from the custody of U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement to Mecklenburg County’s Arrest Processing Center from Georgia on Friday. 

The sheriff’s office says they were brought to face charges in connection with a homicide that happened in May in east Charlotte.

Jose Rivera-Martinez has two mug shots with the same date but clearly taken hours if not days apart.

Reyna Ulloa-Martinez has just the Friday September 6, 2024 mugshot.

The sheriff’s office says that when they get inmates from ICE, they can get a writ that would tell the sheriff’s office to keep the individual in custody and then return them to their original jurisdiction “upon conclusion of his/her business in Mecklenburg County court.”

According to MCSO, deputies asked Georgia transport officer if there were writs for the Martinezes, and they were informed that there weren’t. The Martinezes were booked into custody for “accessory after the fact” charges, and released on unsecured bonds, according to the sheriff’s office.

Here's where it gets interesting. According to court records an order for the arrest of Jose Rivera-Martinez was issued on August 1st, 2024 at 8:55 am. On August 2, 2024 a "writ of habeas corpus" was issued at 9:16 AM ordering that Rivera-Martinez be sent to Charlotte in the custody of CMPD.

A search of the MCSO Arrest turns up two mugshots with the same date 9/6/2024 and different arrest numbers.

Arrest # 1911013 has a date of 9/6/2024 and the time 10:24 AM. Arrest # 1911209 (clearly later) has a date of 9/6/2024 and no time stated. 

But court records indicate an order for release was prepared on 9/6/2024 at 10:49 marked as unsecured and the MCSO arrest records show he was  "committed" at on 9/6/2024 at 11:51 AM and "released" on 9/6/2024 at 1:10 PM.

MCSO found out the Martinezes did have writs late Friday afternoon, and authorities tried to get them back in custody over the weekend. The pair were re-arrested on Monday when they showed up for initial appearances on the accessory charges.

According to court records on 9/9/2024 at 2:53 the release order was modified to $50,000.00 secured. 

But MCSO indicates that that he is in active custody sort of. 

The same is true for Reyna Ulloa-Martinez. 

It doesn't help that the MCSO and North Carolina Courts struggle with hispanic surnames which are often hyphenated. ie Ocasio-Cortez who is unmarried follows the tradition of having both her father's and mother's names, Sergio Ocasio, Blanca Cortez. Unlike Southern tradition of maiden-married names.

The local news continued: We found court documents that say the Martinezes face charges in connection with the killing of Kevin Gabriel Merlos.

Jose Ulloa-Martinez (above) is being held by the MCSO on a single charge of first degree murder in the shooting death on Merlos. According to CMPD Merlos and Ulloa-Martinez got into an altercation of some sort while drinking late into the night. Merlos' wife stated that she woke to the sound of gunshots saw her husband lying on his back in the front yard and that Ulloa-Martinez's vehicle was no longer in the parking lot. 

According to court documents, Merlos was allegedly killed by Jose Ulloa-Martinez on May 26. Ulloa-Martinez was arrested in Texas a little over a week after the alleged shooting.

The court documents say that the Martinezes helped Ulloa-Martinez after the alleged shooting. Jose Rivera-Martinez is accused of helping Ulloa-Martinez get away from the area and getting “fictitious identification documents” for him; Reyna is also accused of helping get fictitious identification documents for him.

Authorities didn’t say how Reyna and Jose Ulloa-Martinez are related.

It’s unclear what led to the Martinezes being arrested by ICE originally, but they both have undocumented identification numbers. Court documents list them both as having addresses in South Carolina.

Cedar Says:

What should be noted is that North Carolina's "immigrant" population has exploded in the last four years. Further, our criminal justice system is broken and now hispanics make up a greater number of arrestees than ever before. Yet our state and local leadership refuses to wake up. 

Most are in our country illegally, either by crossing our border unlawfully or by overstaying their visas. The Pew Research Center estimates about 325,000 or 65% to be unauthorized. 

Mecklenburg County has the largest foreign born population estimated at 18% more than 1/2 are here unlawfully.

These "undocumented" migrants live and work within a subculture in our state. Few pay taxes, most are paid cash wages, often at a rate that is far less than minimum wage.  They are victims of child sexual exploitation and prostitution. They are drug dealers, and construction workers. The amount of remittances to their home country is staggering.  

Because they are here unlawfully most of the crime against them goes unreported despite CMPD's effort to address these concerns few victims will contact the police.

Those who are here legally are unfortunately stigmatized because of those who are not. In short Garry McFadden's refusal to honor ICE detainers benefits no one but the criminals.   

Nothing about having illegals in our state or our county is beneficial regardless of what liberals tell you. 

Because they send most of the earned money home they are untrariffed imports in the form of imported labor.

They don't pay taxes or contribute to social security.

Because they send so much money home it contributes nothing to our local economy or enhances our National GDP.

Many don't have valid driver's licenses or insurance and because of this we pay higher insurance premiums. 

The demand for cheap housing created by the influx of illegals puts additional pressure on our housing market causing prices to explode. 

Our schools suffer and are burdened by kids you don't speak english and are well behind on the academic growth chart.

Because they don't pay social security and their employers don't pay into workers compensation or unemployment funds that means higher rates for the rest of us.

Yet they are often the first to apply for welfare benefits where state aid works are prohibited from asking about citizenship.

Footnote: Before anyone starts on the you're racist bent, my ex and the mother of my kids maiden name is Lopez and my brother's wife is from Honduras. Both here legally.  

One Week Later Still Few Details About The HT SouthPark Robbery

Harris Teeter's Flagship Store at Morrocroft was the scene of a strong arm robbery last Sunday. Yet still details are few.

However here's one detailed take sent CP's way:

Interesting story there at the Taj MaTeeter.  I was in there the next day with my 88 year old Mom, was unaware of what took place.

I looked at four different written media accounts of the incident and this is how the "suspects" were described:

"...the unknown suspects..."

"...three suspects, two females and one male. They left the scene in an unknown vehicle."

"...a group of people tried to get away with items from the Harris Teeter..."

"...unknown suspects attempted to steal merchandise from the business..."

So the full extent of the the facts known about the suspects is:  1. There were 3 of them.  2.  One man, two women.

With so many people at the Teeter witnessing and/or being involved in this surely the press was unable to secure any details like height, weight, hair color, clothing details, race, etc...?  Make/model/color of the vehicle?  Surely there were cameras all over the place, why aren't pictures of these criminals being circulated?

I commend those Teeter employees for not allowing them to leave with the merchandise.  That said, obviously there are risks to stopping thugs like this but the trend we are on cannot be allowed to continue.  I routinely see this happen at the Park Rd. Shopping Center Teeter and the employees don't do a thing about it, and said employees have confirmed they have been instructed to look the other way.

Thing about it is, those same employees know exactly who is going to be doing the stealing the moment the enter the store...

To the credit of the East Blvd. Teeter, during a recent visit I noticed they had a very large, burly, ARMED, security guard on duty.  I chatted him up and he absolutely no way anyone's just walking out with merchandise on his watch!

I think it would be interesting to reach out to Harris-Teeter corporate and write a story on this topic.  How often do they allow people to leave without paying?  How much do the losses add up to?  What is their official policy on people actually having to pay, or not?  How much extra are those of us who actually pay for our groceries charged to account for those who don't?

It's so bad at Park Rd. that recently I saw a guy [6'2", 240lbs, black hair, African American] put a bunch good in a cart, walk straight out (with the cart) completely unimpeded, turn right and head up the driveway and then left on the sidewalk, and then proceed down Park Rd. to locations unknown, with the shopping cart.  The Harris Teeter people did nothing.

Funny thing is the guy who did the stealing was panhandling in front of the store on my way in, asked me for $10 to "put gas in my car".  Those employees knew he was going to steal the moment he walked in, and I'd bet it wasn't his first time doing so in that store. 

Do you ever read this website?  https://meckburbia.blogspot.com/2024/08/burning-man-festival-charlotte-style.html

The blogger/s is/are very well connected in to police and legal community and many of the posts in the comment sections (can get a bit unhinged!) are made by active Charlotte PD. 

What's it going to take to get back to holding people accountable?  You know during the crack epidemic things were worse and finally regular folks had had enough and the police were allowed to restore order...

President Trump is advocating for restoring stop & frisk*....CMPD needs to be allowed to bring back the Jump Out Boys!

End of rant!!

*PS...I support stop & frisk and having lived in NYC for 20 years I can personally attest that those stopped aren't limited to young black males.  As a middle aged white male it happened to me on 3 different occasions.  Nothing ever came of it but I did modify my behaviour going forward!

CP's The last word. 

Big hat tip to the above writer. 

You have to wonder why the silence from the local media why the dismissive and apparent acceptance that Charlotte is a big city and these things are to be expected. 

Note that the original story from WCNC was broadcasted stating the the bear spray came from someone trying to stop the theft. Almost as if people who try to stop smash and grab thieves are the bad guys. No WCNC the bear spray that injured HT shoppers and employees was the weapon used by the thieves. 

stated . 

Observer Home Delivery Comes To The End

Death of The Observer

Seriously have you noticed? The Charlotte Observer will no longer be that "wet thing" in the driveway. The "local paper" has suspended or rather ended home delivery and now will offer a print edition only on Wednesdays, Fridays and Sundays. The print edition will be delivered by the US Postal Service.  

The sound of the paper hitting the driveway before dawn has been notice that dawn is on the way for my entire life. Latey the Charlotte Observer in the driveway was a sure sign that the home belonged to a retired "boomer" locked in the past.

But beyond the loss of home delivery there is also the lack of news reporting.

The Observer doesn't have the staff or perhaps any staff. No they will report news on line but only print the news 3 times a week.

I give them two years tops a total merger with Raleigh's New and Observer within six months.

CMPD

The CMPD PIO seldom reports about shootings, local news media has limited coverage, the few reporters who do work weekends are not covering the crime "beat" and generally unless it is a major news event your best hope for learning of a shooting, murder or robbery is on NextDoor.

Steel Creek has become "Da Hood" known as "Da Creek" crime is 24 / 7 there and it is Charlotte's biggest crime meca.

Still this is the only report of a shooting in "Da Creek" from overnight:

Two people are currently in the hospital after a shooting overnight in southwest Charlotte.

Medic said it happened outside of a business in the Yorkmount neighborhood off of South Tryon Street.

Emergency crews were called to the area around 1:30 a.m.

We are asking CMPD what led up to this shooting and if anyone will face charges.

This is a developing story and we will provide updates as they become available.

If you want to know about Crime in the Q City you might as well watch television:

In the criminal justice system..... 

South Charlotte makes the news because normally bad things happen elsewhere:

A child is dead and four others are seriously hurt after a crash in a south Charlotte neighborhood Saturday afternoon, Medic said.

Medic confirmed it responded to a crash near Sharon View Road and Chadwick Place, just off Colony Road around noon. A total of five people were taken to the hospital, Medic said. The Charlotte-Mecklenburg Police Department later confirmed a the child was pronounced dead by hospital staff.

Sharon View Road between Chadwick Place and Beckford Drive is expected to be closed for several hours, according to CMPD. 

As of publication, further details about the child were not yet available.

Karen Farst, a neighbor in the area, said she heard a "huge bump" Saturday.

"Then I looked and said 'my gosh there's been an accident,'" she added.

Ellen Yingling also lives nearby and said drivers along the road don't tend to follow the speed limit.

"We walk out here regularly, our kids ride their bikes out here," she told WCNC Charlotte. "The speed limit is 35 - no one really ever goes 35."

Farst lamented the child's passing.

"They just don't understand what it's like. In a split second, the person you love most is gone," she said.

The news is of course seriously lacking but that's what we get. Tease headlines and spam camouflaged as news links are the new normal.

Street Take Overs - CMPD Makes Arrests - Meck Judges and DA Dismiss Charges

The headline grabbing stories from last weekend:

"Two people were arrested and 20 citations were issued" show up all around Charlotte's conventional news sources.

Last weekend local news spoke of the Charlotte-Mecklenburg police department disrupting “street takeovers,” 

CMPD said it worked with the N.C. State Highway Patrol to respond to six locations throughout the night, including one where a person was hit by a vehicle. The person was transported to the hospital with serious injuries. In May, CMPD seized a vehicle and issued seven citations during street takeovers in uptown and NoDa.

From the local paper:

Police seized five cars and two guns last weekend. One of the cars in south Charlotte had erupted into flames and was left abandoned at Arrowood Road and Interstate 77, police said. CMPD’s public affairs unit did not respond to questions Wednesday about where the six locations were and what the two arrested people were charged with. Street takeovers are when drivers close off streets for racing and doing tricks like burnouts in an intersection while onlookers gather to watch and film.

Last year, CMPD held a news conference about street takeovers, and said police towed or seized 12 vehicles in February 2023 alone. During that press conference, the department said policing street takeovers can be difficult because officers cannot quickly identify drivers, and often, the drivers aren’t the owners of the vehicles and lack proper registration. Plates are often removed or switched with another vehicle. 

Drivers rarely stop for police, and CMPD’s pursuit policy does not allow officers to chase unless someone committed a crime dangerous to life, police said. Reckless and aggressive driving doesn’t meet the threshold. But a law went into effect in December to introduce new penalties for these events.

But once the headlines fad, little is done to these thugs and idiots and the street racing continues.

Here's the story of just of one of these clowns arrested back in July from a local news station:

CMPD says a repeat street takeover suspect has been arrested. Police say 21-year-old Dekhole Figueiredo-Clark was arrested following a vehicle pursuit.

On July 13th, officers who were proactively monitoring for street racing and street takeover events responded to a Dodge Charger doing donuts in a parking lot off Freedom Drive.

During the donuts, the vehicle hit a pedestrian and fled the scene without checking on the pedestrian’s condition.

The Charger proceeded to drive recklessly onto I-485 and West Boulevard, speeding over 100 mph, weaving through traffic and running red lights, according to CMPD.

Officers attempted a traffic stop on the vehicle on Clanton Road but the driver did not stop, resulting in a vehicle pursuit with assistance from NC State Highway Patrol and the CMPD’s Aviation Unit.

The pursuit ended when the vehicle was disabled by stop sticks, according to a news release.

Figueiredo-Clark was arrested and charged with the following:

Felony fleeing to elude (2 Counts)

Reckless Driving

No Operator’s License

Displaying a fictitious tag

Street takeover

Possession of marijuana

Figueiredo-Clark’s Dodge Charger was towed for evidence and officers seized 25 grams of suspected marijuana, according to a news release.

On Thursday August 1, 2024 Figueiredo-Clark appeared in Mecklenburg County Courtroom of Judge Fritz Mercer, Jr.  The assistant DA Maria Fernanda Caino represented the Meck County DAs office.

Within 30 minutes all charges were dismissed and Figueiredo-Clark's car was released back to him.

Liberal Mecklenburg County Judges are not just soft on crime they just don't give a truck.

The suspect hit a spectator then hit a light pole drove at speeds of 100 miles a hour doesn't have a driver's license, the CMPD Helo had to be called in to follow him and the costs to tax payers is insane and less than two weeks later the charges are dismissed.

In fact since 2020 Figueiredo-Clark has been arrested or ticketed in 15 cases all but 3 have been dismissed. 

The 2020 charges appear to all have been dismissed due to COVID.

A January 2024 arrest resulted in a guilty plea tp speeding and the charges for No Operators License and Reckless Driving were dismissed. 

But Figueiredo-Clark's troubles might not be over just yet because on August 19 the DA's office refiled the dismissed July 13th charges via a grand jury bill of indictment which was returned in the state's favor. The defendant will have to appear once again in court on September 30th.

Charges from a December 9, 2023 street take-over has been continued until later this month.

Then the NC SHP stepped up and filed charges based on evidence determined during the investigation of the July 13th incident. State Troopers issued charges stemming from a chase that occurred during the same night. Those charges are:

Flee/Elude Arrest with a Motor Vehicle (Felony)

Fail to Heed Light or Siren

Speeding (150 in a 55)

Aggressive Driving

 Figueiredo-Clark's first appearance on those charges is October 21, 2024.

CP will let you know if and when those charges are dismissed.

.