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Police say man knew who shot him
Four people charged with murder in his death
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Published: August 26, 2008
Updated: 08/26/2008 12:35 am
KERNERSVILLE - The man who was fatally shot in the chest Sunday in southern Kernersville knew his killer, authorities said yesterday.
Brian Keith Atkins, 40, of Kernersville was found with a gunshot wound after the sport utility vehicle he was driving ran off the road and hit a business sign on South Main Street near the on-ramp for westbound Business 40, Kernersville police said in a statement.
Atkins was taken to Wake Forest University Baptist Medical Center, where he died at 1:36 a.m. Four people have been charged with first-degree murder in connection with Atkins' death.
Those charged are Matthew Lee Cherry, 17, of 3400 Lubet Lane, Winston-Salem; Zachary Robert Moore, 17, of 305 Canary Trail, Winston-Salem; Jose Luis Colunga, 18, of 67 Cottage St., Winston-Salem; and Christian Nunez Pascasio, 18, of 7310 Styers Ferry Road, Clemmons.
At 12:47 a.m. on Sunday, Kernersville police were called to the 500 block of Arbor Hill Road, where someone had fired gunshots. Several vehicles were leaving the area as officers arrived. Police said that Atkins was driving one of the vehicles.
Police Chief Neal Stockton said that investigators got information about where the suspects went after the shooting. Winston-Salem police picked them up in a city neighborhood and brought them to the Kernersville Police Department, where they were charged.
Stockton declined to discuss a motive for the shooting. Atkins was shot once with a handgun, Stockton said.
"There was a connection between the shooter and the victim," Stockton said. "They knew each other. It wasn't a random shooting or a drive-by shooting."
Stockton also said that the shooting was not gang-related.
Cherry and Moore are registered as seniors at Glenn High School in Kernersville, said Theo Helm, a spokesman for the Winston-Salem/Forsyth County Schools. Colunga is listed as a junior at Glenn.
The Forsyth County Sheriff's Office assigned more deputies to Glenn yesterday over fears of more violence, said Maj. Brad Stanley, a spokesman for the sheriff's office.
Pascasio attended West Forsyth High School and Griffith Academy in the 2006-07 school year.
Cherry, Moore, Colunga and Pascasio made their first court appearances yesterday. Court officials said that Cherry told the judge that James Darren "J.D." Byers of Winston-Salem will represent him on the murder charge.
Pete Clary, the chief public defender in Forsyth County, said that his office will represent Moore. Robert Hurley, the capital defender in Durham, said that the N.C. Office of Capital Defenders will assign attorneys to represent Colunga and Pascasio.
Cherry, Moore, Colunga and Pascasio were being held last night in the Forsyth County Jail with no bonds allowed.
■ John Hinton can be reached at 727-7299 or at jhinton@wsjournal.com.
■ Journal reporter Dan Galindo contributed to this story.
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