LUMBERTON — A Robeson County man already wanted for a murder in Maine is now accused of killing a man in Robeson County in early December.
Tony Cornelious Locklear, 43, believed to be from the Maxton area, is charged with murder, first-degree kidnapping and conspiracy to commit first-degree kidnapping in the death of Braxton Chavis Jr., according to information from the Robeson County Sheriff’s Office. Chavis’ death still is under investigation and other arrests are pending.
Chavis was found dead the night of Dec. 4 in woods off Alma Road. Deputies found the body after the Sheriff’s Office received a call that day from Braxton Dewayne Chavis, who told the 911 dispatcher he believed his father had been kidnapped.
The manhunt for Locklear continues. He is described as 5 feet 6 inches tall, weighing about 155 pounds with brown hair and brown eyes. He has a heart and rose tattoo on his left arm, a panther tattoo on his right arm and a heart tattoo on his chest.
“Anyone who sees Locklear should stay away from him. He is considered armed and dangerous,” Sheriff Ken Sealey said.
Anyone with information on Locklear’s whereabouts is asked to call Sheriff’s Office at 910-671-3100 and ask for the Violent Crimes Task Force or Sgt. Brandon Patterson.
If Locklear is caught outside of Maine and North Carolina, he will most likely be extradited to Maine first to stand trial, according to Robeson County District Attorney Johnson Britt said.
“We had 53 homicides in Robeson County last year. Maine did not have as many in the whole state,” Britt said. “The likelihood of them (Maine law enforcement) getting Locklear to trial before the courts of Robeson County are greater.”
Locklear and Christopher Murray, 39, of Red Springs, were wanted in connection to the Dec. 19 shooting of Wayne Lapierre, 59, and his 33-year-old wife, Diem. Murray was captured Dec. 27 in Robeson County.
According to law enforcement sources and published reports, the businessman and his wife were shot in his home on Massachusetts Avenue in Millinocket, Maine. According to the Rev. Raymond J. Cote Jr., a close family friend, the couple’s two children were with their mother’s mother in Bangor, Maine, at the time of the incident.
The Lapierres were taken to Eastern Maine Medical Center in Bangor, and the husband died on Dec. 22.
