The shooting happened around 10 a.m. Monday on Jerome Street in Wingate, just a few streets from the Wingate Police Department, officials with Union County Emergency Medical Services said.
Authorities identified the victim as Prentis Robinson, 55, and the suspected shooter as Douglas Colson, 65.
Colson was on the run Monday, wanted on a murder charge, but police said he turned himself in Tuesday morning.
Breaking —Wingate murder suspect Douglas Colson has turned himself in to police to face charges in the shooting death of Prentis Robinson. pic.twitter.com/cWRGRoUCH7
— Greg Suskin (@GSuskinWSOC9) February 27, 2018
Robinson, an Atlanta musician, was seen on Facebook Live on Monday, complaining about a family member stealing one of his three cellphones. Viewers of his Facebook Live could see him stopping at the Police Department to report the theft. After he left the police station, he walked up a hill toward his home on Booker Street.
>> On WSOCTV.com: Photos: Police investigate deadly shooting in Wingate
Another man appeared a short time later, and Robinson exchanged a few words with him. There was then gunfire.
Wingate Police Chief Donnie Gay was at a loss for words after the shooting, noting that it happened moments after Robinson left the police station.
"I'd just spoke to him, it was, I just ... it's hard to say anything about that,” Gay said. “I just got through talking to him."
Robinson was found facedown in the street and was pronounced dead at the scene.
WSOCTV spoke to Charles Baker, who knew Robinson for more than 30 years.
"That’s just unreal -- for somebody to have that kind of heart, to just walk out in the open like that and kill a man,” Baker said. “That's just -- it's nonsense."
The shooting prompted a lockdown at Wingate University, which is less than a mile from the scene. Wingate Elementary School was also placed on lockdown.
No shots were fired on campus, but the attack left students, teachers and staff members on edge.
Celestia Randolph told WSOCTV that she and other students huddled in a teacher's office during the lockdown.
Victoria Shoaf saw police in bulletproof gear with rifles outside her dorm window.
"I just prayed (because) that's the only thing I could do," Shoaf said.
Officials with Wingate University wrote on Twitter that police said Colson was armed with a long gun.
Wingate police said the Union County Sheriff's Office and the State Bureau of Investigations are assisting with the investigation.
University officials set up counselors for students who needed to talk about the lockdown and the fear they experienced when they believed there was an imminent threat.
About the Author