On March 29, 2024, at about 6:45 p.m., deputies from the Johnston County Sheriff’s Office responded to a shooting at a residence on NC Highway 242 North in Benson. Inside the home they found 50-year-old Kenneth Wayne Dawson deceased from multiple gunshot wounds. An autopsy by the North Carolina Office of the Chief Medical Examiner confirmed he was shot 11 times at close range; the cause of death was listed as multiple gunshot wounds and the manner of death ruled homicide.

Investigators report an altercation between Dawson and his 20-year-old son, Kenneth Jake Dawson, over marijuana found in the house. During the dispute the younger Dawson allegedly shot his father multiple times with a .22 caliber handgun. Deputies arrested him at the scene; he was charged with first-degree murder and manufacturing marijuana and was held without bond. Officers also seized grow lights, ladders, several marijuana plants and related paraphernalia consistent with an indoor grow operation.

Are there readers who knew the Dawsons or who can share information about the family or the residence on NC Highway 242 North?