Samuel Cooper, Jr., 30, was arrested last November 21 with robbing a bank in Garner. After further investigation, police say forensic evidence from the bank robbery linked him to several other crimes including five murders.
By the following week, Raleigh Police and the Wake County Sheriff's Office filed murder charges against Cooper in the following cases.
- The May 12, 2006, murder of Osama "Samuel" Haj-Hussein, who was shot to death inside the In & Out Mart on Creech Road
- The June 3, 2006, murder of Leroy Jernigan, who was shot to death inside the Circus Restaurant on Wake Forest Road
- The April 27, 2007, murder of Timothy Barnwell, who was shot to death outside his apartment on Sunbow Falls Lane
- The October 12, 2007, murder of Rickey High, who was shot to death on N. Tarboro Road
- The October 14, 2007 murder of Tariq Hussain, who was shot to death inside Bobby's Grocery on Garner Road
Cooper also faces attempted murder charges in Rockingham County.
Wake County prosecutors tell Eyewitness News all five murder cases will be tried as capital cases, but it is unclear if they will try all five cases together or separate.
