On the evening of January 22, 2026, 19-year-old Jamari Taylor Takeo Johnson of Hertford, North Carolina, was fatally shot in the 500 block of Edge Street in Elizabeth City. Police were called for reports of gunshots at about 8:38 p.m.; when officers arrived they found Johnson and a male juvenile deceased at the scene.

Investigators treated the incident as an isolated, targeted act. The police chief said the victims and the perpetrator were likely acquainted, and investigators have been interviewing witnesses and collecting evidence. As of early February 2026, no suspects had been publicly identified and no arrests announced.

This double homicide is the city’s first two killings of the year. Anyone with information, however small, is asked to contact the Elizabeth City Police Department to assist the ongoing investigation.