Witness Tips Lead To Swift Arrest In Road Rage Homicide: CMPD

CHARLOTTE, NC — A suspect wanted in a fatal road rage shooting on Interstate 85 over the weekend was taken into custody within hours due to the help of numerous witnesses who provided officers with information, Charlotte-Mecklenburg Police Department said Thursday.

The Aug. 28 shooting occurred around 6 p.m. in the southbound lanes of Interstate 85 near the Statesville Avenue exit. When CMPD officers arrived, they found a man who had been shot. The victim, who was later identified as 58-year-old Carleton Cartier, was pronounced dead at the scene.

Numerous witnesses reported the incident, some unsure of what they saw, CMPD Homicide detective Lt. Bryan Crum said Thursday.

"We had witnesses that remained on scene to speak with us," Crum said. "Obviously this is the interstate, so not necessarily the best place to stop. We really appreciated them doing that. Other people made themselves available by telephone and communicated a tremendous amount of information to our initial responding officers," he said.

"Because of these efforts, they were able to apprehend suspect Kevin Jordan," within three hours, Crum said.

The information led investigators to identify Jordan, 24, as the suspect in the case, which led them to a location where they found both him and the vehicle used in the shooting.

CMPD officers attempted a traffic stop, however Jordan refused to stop and a vehicle pursuit ensued. Jordan then stopped the vehicle and attempted to flee on foot, but was quickly apprehended. Following an interview with detectives, he was charged with murder; discharging a firearm into an occupied vehicle; felony flee to elude; and resisting public officers.

The case appears to be a road rage case, which made the witness statements that much more important, Crum said.

"Road rage cases are very difficult to solve, as you can imagine, because we don't have those relationships between our suspect and victim that we are often able to capitalize on for leads. This is essentially two people passing on the interstate, and it spirals out of control and results in a murder," Crum said.

Drivers who find themselves in road rage incidents should attempt to remove themselves from it as quickly as possible, CMPD Capt. Ryan Kendall said.

"Turn off on a side street, slow down, let the other party get ahead of you, take a step back and don't get wrapped up in the back-and-forth," he said.

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