By Miles Layton

Anyone who’s been around Eastern NC for a long time probably remembers this cold case – an unsolved murder story that shocked everyone. 

Back in June of 1993, a guy shot and killed three people at the Be-Lo Grocery Store in Windsor, with a fourth person surviving a serious stab wound and a fifth victim was shot in the back — the shooter vanished without a trace. That story was all over television — the whole thing just blew people’s minds because of the sheer violent nature of it all, especially with Windsor being a small town.  

Back then, the case generated a $30,000 reward and was featured on “America’s Most Wanted.” The State Bureau of Investigation worked the case full-time.

“I don’t know of a single case in northeastern North Carolina where we have dedicated more interest and resources,” Bill Godley, SBI special agent in charge of the Greenville District, told the Virginia-Pilot in June of 1994.

Here we are, nearly 33 years later — Windsor Police Department posted this to social media on Thursday…

A male subject was arrested for an outstanding Order For Arrest for a minor traffic offense in Ahoskie.

Reports of this subject being involved with the 1993 Be-lo Murders are, at this point, unconfirmed. Windsor Police Department is committed to investigating and exhausting any and all leads in reference to this case, and will look into every avenue regarding this individual.

Windsor Police Department asks the community to respond to the immense speculation with respect and dignity, as we look into evidence.

Ahoskie Police Chief Michele Garrett said to the Albemarle Observer, “We did make an arrest, and the arrest is unrelated to the Be-Lo massacre” — she then referred me to the Windsor PD’s post to social media.

All that being said, let’s revisit a cold case that shocked Eastern NC.

WINDSOR — Flashback to more than 30 years after a gunman killed three grocery store employees and wounded two others in what remains Bertie County’s most notorious unsolved murder, the case may be closer to a conclusion.  

On June 6, 1993, at approximately 6:15 p.m., a black male who had concealed himself inside the Be-Lo Grocery Store in Windsor bound six victims with gray duct tape, stacking them into three piles before opening fire. Joyce Coburn Reason, 36, of Windsor; store manager Grover Lee Cecil Jr., 47, of Ayden; and cleaning-crew member Johnnie Rankins Jr., 48, of Edenton, were killed. Reason and Cecil were each shot once in the head; Rankins was shot in the back.

Two others survived critical injuries. Thomas E. Hardy, 48, of Edenton, had his throat slashed and a butcher knife broken off in his back. Sylvester Welch Jr., 40, of Hertford, was shot in the back but managed to crawl to a store phone and call police. A sixth victim was unharmed. The gunman fled with approximately $3,000 and money orders and was believed to have had an accomplice waiting outside in a getaway car.

In 1994, one year after the killings, 250 family members and community supporters gathered at the abandoned store to mark the anniversary.

“We will never give up until we have this person in our custody,” Windsor Police Chief Freddie Bowen said at the ceremony, according to a June 1994 story in the Virginia-Pilot.

Bertie County Sheriff Wallace Perry noted the unusual persistence of the case. “It’s very unusual that it hasn’t been solved because there really has been a lot of effort put into this,” Perry told the Virginia-Pilot.

Fast forward more than 32 years — Martin Community College now uses the building where BeLo once operated on West Granville Street, a short hop from the Bertie County Courthouse.

Anyone with information about the case is encouraged to contact the Windsor Police Department or the N.C. State Bureau of Investigation.​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​