Police: Woman and her parents killed in Catawba County; 1 arrested

MAIDEN, N.C. — The Maiden Police Department arrested a man accused of shooting and killing a mother and her parents Tuesday night.

Now, their community plans to remember the family with a candlelight vigil.

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Police said they were called just before 7:45 p.m. Tuesday to their home on PJ McRee Road. At the scene, police found 28-year-old Jenna Lynn Cox and her parents, 61-year-old Cyndi Marie Cox and 61-year-old Charles Kevin Cox, dead from gunshot wounds.

A 10-year-old boy was also inside the home at the time of the shooting but was not hurt, according to police. The boy, who was Jenna Cox’s son, was able to run to a neighbor’s house to get help, Channel 9′s Dave Faherty learned.

Investigators told Channel 9 that the suspect, Issac Nathaniel Christenbury, left the scene and called 911 to turn himself in. Christenbury was later arrested in Lincoln County and charged with three counts of first-degree murder.

Police said the shooting might have stemmed from a dispute between Christenbury and Jenna Cox. Faherty learned that Christenbury had lived at the home at one time and police confirmed he had previously dated Jenna.

Christenbury made his first appearance in Catawba County District Court Wednesday morning and remains in the Catawba County jail without bond. He didn’t say much but he acknowledged the judge when she read out the charges filed against him.

Faherty spoke with a woman Wednesday morning who said the 10-year-old boy ran down the street to her home to tell her about the killings. She said she had just finished grilling out when she saw him.

“I said, ‘You stay right here with me. It’s going to be OK,’” Peggy Beeson said. “I said, ‘I ain’t going to let nobody hurt you.’ I said, ‘I’m sorry this happened but you’re safe now.’”

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She said she saw Christenbury drive away from the home before she made the gruesome discovery inside.

“I heard another gunshot, and then I saw a guy get in a white car in front of the house where it happened, and he just kind of slowly drove off,” Peggy Beeson said. “And no sooner than that happened, this little boy came running up to me, grabbed ahold of me, and told me that someone just shot his grandparents in the head and killed them.”

Neighbors said the boy’s grandparents’ bodies were found inside and his mother was out back.

Faherty learned the boy is now staying with a family member in Burke County.

Tammy Lawing lives right across the street. Her thoughts are with the 10-year-old and his family.

“I just feel so bad for him. It’s just really unfortunate,” she said. “I don’t even know. My heart just goes out for him.”

No one has been killed in the town of Maiden in more than 20 years, Faherty learned.

The community held a candlelight vigil for the victims at Malorie’s Place Wednesday night.

>> October is Domestic Violence Awareness Month. If you or someone you know is dealing with domestic abuse, there is help available. Call Safe Alliance’s Greater Charlotte Hope Line at 980-771-HOPE. It’s available 24 hours a day.

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