Double Homicide Suspect Killed In Shootout With Iredell County Deputies
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MOORESVILLE, N.C. – The suspect involved in the double homicide in Mooresville on Saturday night is dead after an eight-hour standoff with deputies that ended in a shootout, according to the Iredell County Sheriff’s Office.
Deputies recevied information about the suspect’s location, leading them to a home on Oswalt Amity Road in Troutman, North Carolina on Sunday morning. There, police were met by 39-year-old Justin Michael Strawser, armed with an AR-15 rifle.
As officers approached, Strawser allegedly pointed the gun at them and barricaded himself inside the home before firing numerous rounds at the deputies. Officers later learned that four juveniles were inside the home, as well.
The sheriff’s office said the juveniles were uncooperative and refused the deputies’ rescue attempts.
Over an hours-long standoff, negotiators attempted to get Strawser to leave the home but every time, he would fire several rounds at the deputies, hitting multiple police vehicles in the process.
After many failed negotiation attempts, police used additional tactics, including gas, to get Strawser to exit.
When the gas was used, the four juveniles fled followed by Strawser.
Strawser, wearing a bulletproof vest, engaged in gunfire with deputies one last time before he was fatally shot. None of the deputies or juveniles were injured.
Oswalt Amity Road and Triplett Road were closed for an extended time Sunday morning due to a heavy law enforcement presence. The area is in the process of reopening.
Authorities said the suspects and victims knew each other. Throughout the barricade, Strawser made several statements to police about the shooting on Home Drive. Deputies believe it was possibly motivated by narcotics and robbery, not a random home invasion.
The victims in the shooting Saturday night were identified as 22-year-old Eduardo Cordova and 24-year-old Caleb Loper. Another victim is in the hospital with life-threatening injuries.
ORIGINAL STORY (3/10/24, 8:28 A.M.)
MOORESVILLE, N.C. – Two people are dead and one person is in the hospital after a deadly shooting in Mooresville.
According to the police, it happened just after 6 p.m. at a mobile home on Home Drive just off Bailey Road.
Deputies arrived at the scene and found two people dead inside and another severely injured.
Neighbors say they say three people in ski masks get out of a van and go into the home.
It is unclear if the suspects know the victims.
“It’s been years since we’ve had anything like this,” Iredell County Sheriff Darren Campbell said. “Our investigators will be working all night and all day tomorrow and the next night until we figure out exactly what went on.”
Anyone with information related to this case is asked to call the Iredell County Sheriff’s Office at 704-878-3100.
