Harold Hearne II

Do you know who murdered Harold Clifton Hearne II in 1993?
Harold Clifton Hearne II was a devoted husband, a father to three children, and a respected pharmacist known throughout his community. The 44-year-old Caucasian man owned the Lowell Discount Drug Store, where he was appreciated by his customers. His wife, Faye Hearne, remembers him as a "good man, a good Christian man, who had good values." They had met on a blind date in 1971 and built a life together, enjoying each other's company and raising their family. Harold was also an active community member, known for his involvement with the Boy Scouts. His family and friends recall a man who worked hard, loved his children, and enjoyed life.

The night of Thursday, August 12, 1993, began with a simple household problem. One of the lawnmowers his two youngest children used for their yard-mowing business was broken. Harold planned to take it to a repair shop the next day and decided to put it in the back of his car that evening. When he went to the trunk, he found it was full of old newspapers. Around 11 p.m., he drove to a recycling center located in the parking lot of the Akers Center shopping plaza on East Franklin Boulevard in Gastonia, North Carolina, to dispose of the papers. As he walked back toward his car after dropping them in the bin, an unknown assailant shot him twice. Harold Hearne died there in the parking lot.

The motive for the killing remains a mystery. Nothing was stolen from him; his wallet and car were left untouched at the scene. This led his family and investigators to believe that robbery was not the reason for the attack. His wife Faye speculates that he may have inadvertently witnessed another crime in progress and was killed to prevent him from being a witness. "It was just wrong place, wrong time," she later said. The murder weapon was never recovered, leaving few clues for police to follow. The news was delivered to Faye by a police officer who came to their home late that night. "He told me that Harold had been killed," she recalled. "After that anything else that was told, I don’t even remember the words or anything."

The Gastonia Police Department launched a homicide investigation. About a month after the murder, in September 1993, investigators arrested a suspect in connection with the case. However, the individual was soon released from custody due to a lack of sufficient evidence to proceed with charges. No other arrests have ever been made, and no other persons of interest have been publicly named. The case has grown cold over the decades, but it remains an open investigation with the Gastonia Police Department.

Decades have passed since Harold Hearne’s life was cut short, but his family has never given up hope for answers. Faye Hearne never remarried and has had to navigate life's milestones—watching her sons graduate, get married, and start their own families—without her husband. "I won’t say it’s gotten any easier, but there are other things that go on in life," she said. "Life keeps going on. So, you just have to go with it." Her initial desire for vengeance has softened over time into a deep need for closure. "Now it’s justice," she explained. "We need to close this out. If nothing else, just to say we know who did this."

The case of Harold Hearne's murder is unsolved. The Gastonia Police Department continues to hold the case file, hoping for a new lead that could finally break it open. As of May 2026, investigators are still seeking information from the public. Anyone who might remember something from that night in August 1993, no matter how insignificant it may seem, is urged to contact the authorities. Information can be provided to Crime Stoppers of Gaston County at 704-861-8000 or by calling the Gastonia Police Department's front desk at 704-866-6702 and asking for the detective assigned to the case.