Apex police release 911 calls from deadly shooting that killed two women
APEX, N.C. (WTVD) -- The man accused of shooting and killing two women and a dog in an Apex neighborhood had never before had a problematic run-in with Apex Police Department.
Apex Police Chief Jason Armstrong said Friday his department had never been called to Harry Hardman's home near the intersection of Brussels Drive and Chipping Drive. That changed Monday when worried neighbors picked up their phones and dialed 911.
"My neighbor is in the backyard just like screaming at the sky. He's kind of pacing back and forth," one caller could be heard saying on 911 recordings released Friday.
SEE ALSO | 'Shocked' & 'Traumatized': Neighbors still in disbelief after 2 women murdered in Apex
While officers were on the way to the neighborhood, 69-year-old Nancy Taylor walked up to Hardman and started talking to him.
Taylor was the head of the South Walk community's HOA. She moved into the neighborhood about 3 years ago to be closer to her grandchildren. Neighbors said she was affectionately called "grandma" by other children who lived nearby.
Gabrielle Raymond, 37, had also heard the commotion. She picked up her phone, called 911 and left her home walking toward Hardman.
It's unknown what was said between Hardeman and the two women, but he eventually pulled out a gun and shot both of the women. Police said Raymond was still on the phone with 911 when she was shot.
Taylor and Raymond both died.
"We don't know what caused this. We don't have anything that we have uncovered in our investigation at this time that points to you know, this was a potential catalyst to this happening," Armstrong said Friday.
Hardman appeared before a Wake County judge this week where he is facing two counts of murder and one count of animal cruelty for shooting and killing his own dog. Investigators said Hardeman killed his dog before his neighbors found him screaming at the sky and started calling 911.
The families' of Taylor and Raymond are struggling to understand why this happened. Armstrong read statements from each family Friday. Raymond's family described her a "bright light (that) was taken too soon."
Apex Mayor Jacques K. Gilbert said discussions are underway about holding a memorial for the victims, but for now, those plans remain unfinalized.
"This is a very difficult time for all the families, and may I add our enitre community," he said.
