DURHAM, N.C. (WNCN) — A warrant obtained by CBS 17 is providing more details on what exactly happened when a man was shot to death in a Durham Food Lion parking lot in December 2020.
Alexander Keith Hairston, 20, of Garner, was shot to death just before 11 a.m. on Dec. 19, 2020, in the parking lot of the Food Lion located on the 3000-block of Fayetteville Street, police said.
A warrant released this month reveals that Hairston was along for the ride with a friend who was meeting someone to “trade objects,” which were actually guns.
The warrant, which seeks information from a person’s Instagram account, goes into detail about how the friend set up the meet with the suspect(s) and ended up meeting at a Food Lion after they were unable to find the apartment complex where they were told to meet.
According to the warrant, when the friend of the victim – who was driving his girlfriend’s Jeep – arrived at the Food Lion, he sent a text to another person to let them know they had arrived.
After sending the message, the friend told police that he saw the suspect and another male walking toward the vehicle they were driving in so they drove through the parking lot to meet them. The two suspects then got in the back seat of the Jeep. After sitting down, the suspect sitting behind Hairston – who was in the front passenger seat – took out a gun, pointed it at Hairston and demanded the driver hand over his gun, the warrant states.
“The suspect sitting behind Hairston grabbed Hairston’s [hoodie] and pulled Hairston back against the headrest before shooting Hairston in the back of the head,” according to the warrant.
After shooting Hairston in the back of the head, the two suspects left the Jeep and ran from the scene.
The friend of Hairston then drove to the front of the Food Lion and called 911 at 10:53 a.m. Police and EMS arrived at the scene and Hairston was pronounced dead at 11 a.m.
On March 18, Durham police and the US Marshals arrested and charged Jonathan Winfred High Jr., 19, of Durham, with murder, robbery with a dangerous weapon, and conspiracy to commit robbery with a dangerous weapon. He was also charged with a probation violation.
High is currently being held in the Durham County Jail without bond.
Hairston’s friend doesn’t appear to be facing any charges in the case.
