Richmond County investigators solved a cold case this week after interviewing witnesses that pointed them to a suspect whose been in jail since February.
Willie Ferrell, 42, is being charged with murder in the 2019 shooting death of 52-year-old Dwayne Lane. He’s been in the Charles B. Webster Detention Center since Feb. 20 with a hold for Superior Court.
The victim was found dead inside his Bayvale Road home with apparent gunshot wounds on Dec. 30, 2019. Investigators interviewed witnesses and were unable to find a suspect.
In March 2020, a $1,500 reward was offered in the case using monies contributed by the victim’s family and others. But the trail stayed cold until this year.
“The Richmond County Sheriff’s Office Criminal Investigation Division was able to locate and interview original witnesses as well as new witnesses in relation to the case,” sheriff’s Sgt. Walter McNeil Jr. said in a press release. “As a result, Investigators were able to arrest Willie Ferrell.”
A motive was not released. The victim was remembered in an obituary as a generous spirit who loved to hunt and spend time with family and friends. After his death, the victim was also remembered online as a plumber and a great person. He was survived by a wife and son as well as several siblings and his parents.
The suspect was listed as homeless after his Feb. 20 arrest. He has charges from early 2023 that remain unresolved in court, including cocaine possession, burglary in the first degree, obstruction of an officer and criminal trespassing.
Ferrell has previous convictions of simple battery, criminal trespassing, shoplifting, domestic violence, and unlawful conduct on a 911 call.
(Note: A previous version of this story incorrectly listed Lane as having previous convictions. It was Ferrell who had those convictions.)
