On the evening of Thursday, June 11, 2026, officers were called to a residence on Berry Lane in Whiteville, North Carolina, where they found Raphael Gowans deceased from a gunshot wound. Authorities ruled the death a homicide and the Columbus County Sheriff’s Office opened a criminal investigation into the shooting.

Detectives soon identified a primary suspect and obtained an arrest warrant for first-degree murder for 18-year-old Eric Martin Jr. He is described as a Black male with a medium complexion and short dreadlocks. Law enforcement carried out ground patrols and drone searches near the scene, and the sheriff’s office warned the public that Martin was considered armed and dangerous and should not be approached.

The suspect remained at large and investigators asked anyone with information about his whereabouts to contact the sheriff’s office. Does anyone in the Whiteville area have information that could help bring Raphael Gowans’s killer to justice?