CONCORD (AP) ó Police say a man has been charged with murder after shooting his ex-girlfriend and another woman to death in the ex-girlfriend’s neighborhood.
Authorities arrested 28-year-old Christopher Joseph Willard, of 728 Old Charlotte Road, Concord, on Friday after a four-hour standoff following the shootings at 314 Highland Ave.
Police say Willard killed his ex-girlfriend, 27-year-old Melissa Jones, of 301 Highland Ave., and 57-year-old Joyce Fink, of 314 Highland Ave.
Fink’s daughter told the Charlotte Observer her mother had recovered from a stroke last year and was shot as she sat in a chair.
Willard is charged with two counts of first-degree murder and remains in jail under no bond.
Concord Police Maj. Wendell Rummage said officers were called to the Highland Avenue home early in the afternoon after they learned shots had been fired in the house.
Officers surrounded the house, and at one point, Concord police officials asked “all news helicopters remain at least 2 miles from the scene and refrain from any direct fly overs.”
At one point, and it’s not clear how, Jones got out of the residence and was taken to Carolinas Medical Center-NorthEast, where she died.
After a four-hour standoff, Willard finally surrendered without incident to officers about 4 p.m.
Police would only say that their initial investigation indicates the shooting “appears to have a domestic motive and all parties were acquainted.”
Willard is charged with two counts of first-degree murder. The Sheriff’s Office Web site does not indicate Willard has any previous arrest record in recent years.