Kanon Cook Melvin, 21, of Fayetteville, North Carolina, was shot and killed in Myrtle Beach, South Carolina, on the evening of June 10, 2021. The shooting occurred on Willoughby Lane near 44th Avenue and Robert Grissom Parkway after a planned drug transaction between Melvin, his 19-year-old companion Ja’Leel Stephens, and three other men turned violent. Both Melvin and Stephens were found dead when police arrived.

Myrtle Beach investigators say witness statements and video surveillance led to the arrests of 21-year-old Brandon Hembree, 20-year-old Daniel Hembree, and 20-year-old Brady Gilcrease on two counts of murder and possession of a weapon during a violent crime. Court filings later described that Melvin entered the suspects’ vehicle, pointed a gun at Gilcrease’s head, and Stephens began assaulting Gilcrease, at which point Brandon Hembree fired the shots that killed both victims.

In May 2023 a judge granted a motion dismissing the murder charges against Brandon Hembree on a stand your ground self-defense claim. The cases against Daniel Hembree and Brady Gilcrease remained pending with the 15th Circuit Solicitor’s Office. Did anyone in the Myrtle Beach area see or record activity on Willoughby Lane that night?