Man, 48, charged in fatal
stabbing outside cinemas

Asheville police arrested a local man in the Fourth of July stabbing death of a Jamaican native in the Beaucatcher Cinemas parking lot on South Tunnel Road.

Steven Gordon Shultz, 48, of Rose Hill Road, is charged with stabbing Frederick Garfield McLeod multiple times during a drug sale in McLeod’s car outside the theater. McLeod, 32, was a former resident of Jamaica who had lived in Asheville for about five years.

Shultz is accused of first-degree murder and robbery with a dangerous weapon. He was being held without bond at the Buncombe County Detention Center.

The suspect was arrested after he came to the Asheville Police Department and made statements that placed him in McLeod’s car at the time of the stabbing, police reported.

Shultz, who had been purchasing drugs from McLeod, stole cocaine from him after stabbing him, police noted, adding that they have conflicting reports on what led to the altercation.

Detectives determined that the stabbing took place just before 11:16 p.m. inside the victim’s blood-drenched car in the theater’s parking lot. At the scene, police found that the car was still running, with the driver’s-side door open.

Police said McLeod obviously got out of his car in a hurry and walked to the front doors of the cinemas, seeking help. He found the doors locked because the last film of the night had started.

McLeod reportedly beat on the doors until the staff appeared. At that point, he asked them to call 911 because he had been stabbed. The staff tried to seat McLeod on a chair, but he collapsed on the floor.

McLeod was transported to Mission Hospitals, where he later died while being treated for multiple stab wounds, police said.
Questioning of McLeod’s relatives led police to determine that he was a drug dealer, and Shultz was a customer of his who called McLeod that night before meeting him in the parking lot. Drug dealers favor large parking lots because of their anonymity, police noted.

Wife, 70, charged in shooting
of allegedly abusive spouse

FAIRVIEW — A 70-year-old woman was charged July 7 with using a .32-caliber Smith & Wesson to shoot shooting her allegedly abusive husband in the parking lot of the Fairview Post Office.

Earlier, Buncombe County sheriff’s deputies, who had been investigating her abuse complaints in connection with a domestic dispute, had warned her to get a restraining order.

Irene Hebb reportedly shot at her husband twice, striking him once in the shoulder, officials said.

The 10:30 a.m. shooting took place in a loading area behind the post office at 1352 Charlotte Highway.

In the aftermath, police charged Hebb with assault with a deadly weapon inflicting serious injury. Authorities also alleged that she tried to hit her husband with her vehicle.

Later that night, Lawson Hebb, 77, of Fairview was listed in serious-but-stable condition. He worked as a custodian under a contract with the post office.

When deputies arrived, Irene Hebb was sitting in his car. She surrendered without incident and reportedly did not threaten any customers.

Hebb was being held in the Buncombe County Detention Center on a $50,000 bond.

Meanwhile, the Buncombe County Clerk of Courts office reportedly has no criminal record of domestic problems between the Hebbs.

The post office remained open after the shooting because the staff felt any danger to workers or customers had passed.

Man charged with assault,robbery of disabled woman

An Asheville man was arrested for assaulting and robbing a handicapped woman over the Fourth of July weekend.

Michael M. Rumley, 54, who gave his residence as Wall Street, was charged with common-law robbery and assault on a handicapped person. He reportedly assaulted the woman in her wheelchair and stole $40 cash from her.

His bond was set at $3,000.

Substance abuse counselor
facing charges of bribery

WAYNESVILLE — A Haywood County substance abuse counseler  was arrested June 30 on allegations that he fraudulently took money to let a patient skip a court-ordered alcohol assessment.

The arrest immediately followed a search of the counselor’s Gateway Clinic office.

Dr. Harry F. Manes, 60, reportedly offered to accept a bribe of $1,000 in exchange for a certificate for 60 hours of counseling that the patient needed to regain his driver’s license.

The man made a down payment of $100 and then contacted the Haywood County Sheriff’s Office. Subsequently, Haywood detectives included the Waynesville Police Department because Manes’ office is in the city.

In a joint investigation, the departments arrived at a charge of felony property by false pretenses.

During the search, investigators seized Manes’ computer equipment and said they found six plastic baggies containing a “green leafy substance” in his office.

They also said they found two prescription bottles containing the same leafy substance, a “Passion Booster” pill bottle containing the substance and a purple round container filled with the substance, as well as a wooden pipe.

After he was charged, Manes was released the next day on a $3,000 bond.

Downtown Hendersonville
seeking stolen goat statue

HENDERSONVILLE — A goat statue featured in “Kidding Around Downtown,” a public art display, has disappeared.

Miss Connie Mara, the goat sponsored by the Friends of Carl Sandburg, was reported missing July 7 from its location in the 100 N. Main St. block across from the Historic Henderson County Courthouse. The goat was decorated by Joanie Covell, a local artist.

Anyone with information on the missing goat statue is asked to call the Hendersonville Police Department at 697-3042.

Candler home invasion
results in shooting, theft

CANDLER — Three white men, clad in black and wearing bandanas, reportedly burst into a home and shot a man in Candler about 2 a.m. July 4, according to the Buncombe County Sheriff’s Department.

They inflicted non-life-threatening injuries on Charlie Brown, 32. Later that evening, Brown was reportedly in fair condition at Mission Hospitals.

In addition to shooting Brown, the men who committed the home invasion stole some items. Those with information on the case are asked to call CrimeStoppers at 255-5050.

Asheville man charged
in brewery break-in, theft

An Asheville man was charged on July 6 with burglarizing $1,800 from Asheville Brewing Co.

Antonio Carlos Porter, 44, of South French Broad Avenue was charged with breaking and entering, larceny and damage to property, according to Asheville police.

Porter was being held in the Buncombe County Detention Center with bond set at $10,500.

UNCA police investigating criminal damage at facility

UNC Asheville Campus Police are investigating criminal damage to property at the university’s shipping and receiving warehouse, which was reported about 10:30 a.m. June 30. No arrests have yet been made