Dawson Bryan Thompson, 21, of Mount Gilead, North Carolina, was killed on the afternoon of September 2, 2024. After finishing a shift at an Ingles in Albemarle around 5:15 p.m., he drove to Mount Gilead and met two juveniles. Surveillance footage shows one teen concealing a long rifle and the other carrying a pistol. At the intersection of Fairview Farm and Zion Church Road, evidence presented in court indicates Thompson was shot while still inside his 2011 Honda and then shot multiple times as he attempted to flee the vehicle. His body was found in the roadway by a passerby about 6 p.m. The assailants stole his car and abandoned it the next evening, setting it on fire in a field at the end of Williams Street in Mount Gilead.

Investigators used Life360 location data shared by Thompson’s family to trace his recent movements to the suspects. Two juveniles, aged 14 and 16, were arrested the evening after the murder and charged with murder; they made their first court appearance on September 7, 2024, and were later indicted and identified as Antonio Dumas, 16, and Cadarien Leake, 14. Funeral services for Thompson were held September 8 at Holly Mount Baptist Church; he is survived by his parents Matthew Thompson and Tara Lemonds, siblings, grandparents, and four nephews. If anyone knew Dawson or has information about what happened that afternoon, please come forward.