2 sought in death of Raeford hotel manager captured in California
RAEFORD, N.C. (WTVD) -- Two people charged in the slaying of a Raeford motel manager earlier this month have been arrested in California.
The U.S. Marshals Service said 21-year-old Tyler Mark Pierce surrendered to the California Highway Patrol after being stopped Monday on Interstate 80.
His girlfriend, 21-year-old Samantha Lynn Shilts, was arrested separately and is in custody in Sacramento County, California.
Warrants charge the two with first-degree murder and common-law robbery in the death of the manager of the Raeford Inn motel on U.S. Highway 401.
Deputies with the Hoke County Sheriff's Office said the body of 58-year-old Jakir Mohammad Sheikh was found Jan. 19 in a room that the couple had rented.
At first, the sheriff's office thought Sheikh could have died from natural causes. However, there were signs of a struggle in the room, and it was later revealed he died of strangulation.
It was not immediately clear if the two suspects had attorneys.
The Associated Press contributed to this report
