Attempted murder ends with man trapped under a Chevy Cavalier, NC sheriff says
A man was found trapped under a Chevrolet Cavalier after he survived a gruesome attempted murder, according to investigators in eastern North Carolina.
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The discovery was made Monday south of Whiteville, and the victim remains hospitalized, according to the Columbus County Sheriff’s Office.
“Deputies … were dispatched to a disturbance in the 3000 block of Thompson Town Road. While responding to the incident, additional information was received that an individual was struck by a vehicle and remained trapped,” the sheriff’s office said in a Sept. 22 news release.
“Emergency personnel were able to successfully remove the victim from under the vehicle. … The victim sustained serious injuries and was airlifted to a trauma facility where he remains in critical condition.”
An investigation revealed the man was run over as a driver was attempting to kill two people, according to a warrant. Detectives did not reveal details about the other intended victim.
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The suspect, Earl James Whitman Jr., of Whiteville, is accused of “willfully” using the Chevy Cavalier as a “deadly weapon” to assault Mickey Ray Duncan, court documents say.
Details of a motive have not been released.
Whitman, 43, lives about 4 miles southeast of the crime scene, court records report.
He has been charged with two counts of attempted first degree murder, two counts of assault with a deadly weapon with intent to kill/inflicting serious injury, and damage to property (a livestock fence).
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Whiteville is about a 115-mile drive south from uptown Raleigh.
