Cumberland deputies hope to solve 2-year-old murder

Friday, March 25, 2016
Murder canvass
Law officers step up efforts to solve a two-year-old murder.

LINDEN (WTVD) -- The Cumberland County Sheriff's Office is ramping up an investigation into a 2-year-old murder.

Deputies were back at the scene of the crime Thursday. Sheriff's investigators said they were hoping for just one piece of evidence that could be a slam dunk for the case - but they didn't get it on this day.

Two years ago Friday, 29-year-old Dwayne Sawyer was killed in a drive-by shooting at his home. Two other people in the house were also wounded.

Investigators say no one saw the shooter or shooters.

ORIGINAL STORY: Man fatally shot in Cumberland County

For two hours Thursday morning, sheriff's investigators set up their mobile command center near the murder scene just outside Linden in northern Cumberland County. They passed out flyers, and talked with residents, hoping to jog someone's memory.

"We have some, I would say, people of interest we are looking at, but we just don't have that one nail to put in the coffin to say we have a definite suspect and we can prove that he did it," said Sgt. Sean Swain of the Cumberland County Sheriff's Office. "But people talking up here in this part of town, somebody has heard something that's what we need -- somebody to come forward and to confirm what we already think."

Gwendolyn Snelling, the mother of the victim, said she is not giving up hope that this case will be solved.

"We want the shooter, we want the planner, we want the people who took him away. We want everybody," Snelling said. "I want everybody that was involved in the death of my son to be prosecuted."

Anyone with information can call the Sheriff's Office at (910) 323-1500 or Crimestoppers at (919) 483-8477.

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