On June 30, 2023, 55-year-old James Locklear Jr. of Maxton, North Carolina, was fatally shot during an armed robbery at about 1:25 a.m. while using the Credit Union ATM in the Piggly Wiggly parking lot off Patterson and Martin Luther King Drives. Surveillance video from the ATM captured the confrontation and the moments when Locklear was shot in the stomach. He was airlifted to a hospital but died during surgery.

The Maxton Police Department identified three suspects: Ricky Braddy Jr., Crystal G. Scott, and Amanda Carol Deese. Scott was arrested the day of the shooting and Braddy the following day; both faced charges of first-degree murder and armed robbery with a dangerous weapon. Deese was initially at large and described as armed and dangerous. The amount taken in the robbery was not disclosed. The community was asked to assist with information to locate Deese and aid the investigation.

Does anyone have information about Deese’s whereabouts or about that early-morning activity near the Piggly Wiggly?