AHOSKIE, N.C. — A rural community in Ahoskie is reeling, after a shooting Friday left a man and teenage boy dead. The two pulled out guns and ended up killing each other following a confrontation at the boy's home, according to Hertford County Sheriff Dexter Hayes.
Hayes also said deputies learned of another shooting that unfolded just minutes after the first one. Four suspects were arrested in connection to that crime.
The double homicide in Hertford County left Derrick Monger, 46, and a 17-year-old boy dead. It has left many people who live in a rural Ahoskie neighborhood shaken up.
"That was a surprise," said neighbor Bobby Wright. "That was really a surprise. Why did it happen? What was going on? What caused this? I don't know."
Sheriff Hayes told 13News Now that Monger went to the 17-year-old's home on Jernigan Airport Road, hours after an apparent fight between the teenager and Monger's son at a store.
"Because of, I guess, anger, revenge, or whatever the motive was, this happened... and now you have two families waking up with questions," said Hayes.
Witnesses told deputies both Monger and the 17-year-old were both armed. Hayes could not yet say who fired first, however, he did say the two shot and killed each other.
"Everyone in the community is shaken when things like this happen," said Hayes. "When a situation like this occurs, when you think back, this didn't have to happen, if cooler heads would have prevailed, if someone would have taken a moment, it could have ended a different way."
Deputies learned another shooting happened just minutes after the first outside the same home. They said bullet fragments grazed the 17-year-old's brother, who is expected to survive.
Investigators believe four of Monger's relatives acted in retaliation. They are charged in connection to the second shooting.
"I hope this world can start changing [...] the way people look at each other," Wright added.
Sheriff's deputies arrested the four suspects for the second shooting.
- Cameron Lassiter and Justin Powell are charged with two counts of attempted murder and two counts of discharging a weapon into an occupied property.
- Brandin Hawkins was charged with one count of accessory after the fact.
- Andreas Monger was charged with counts of attempted first-degree murder and two counts of discharging a weapon into occupied property.
Sheriff Hayes tells 13News Now Andreas Monger is the wife of Derrick Monger, one of the homicide victims.
Hayes said one suspect is still on the run; however, the he says investigators know who they are looking for.
In addition to sending condolences to the families affected, Hayes additionally shared a message of gratitude toward the community.
"I'd [...] like to thank those good citizens who didn't turn a blind eye, who did stand up and help us solve this because without them, without coming forth, law enforcement can also do so much," he said.
Agents with the North Carolina State Bureau of Investigation, officers with the Ahoskie Police Department, and troopers with the State Highway Patrol responded to assist with this ongoing investigation.