Suspect put metal object in uncle’s head to conceal gunshot wound, sheriff says

WACO, N.C. — A death in a small town in Cleveland County earlier this year turned out to be a murder and attempted cover-up, according to the sheriff’s office on Thursday.

The Cleveland County Sheriff’s Office posted a video on Thursday with an update on a death investigation that started in April in Waco, North Carolina.

The sheriff said the victim, Clifford Ward, was found dead with a metal object in his head. He was found outside his home on Racine Drive by a friend, who then called authorities.

Investigators found the scene suspicious and began asking questions, including interviewing the victim’s nephew. The nephew, identified as David Ward, told investigators that the victim “was prone to falling” and he said that the victim had fallen, leading to his death.

The sheriff’s office says David Ward “quickly became a person of interest” after learning that he had deposited a check from the victim’s account for a “large sum of money.”

During the investigation, the state medical examiner’s office revealed that Clifford Ward had been shot in the back of the head, and that the metal object had been placed in his head “to conceal the crime,” according to the sheriff’s office.

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Five months later, detectives say David Ward is being charged with murder. He was arrested on Thursday for first-degree murder and obtaining property by false pretense.

Search warrants obtained by Channel 9 say that David also forgot to tell investigators that he ran several errands on the day of Clifford’s death, including going home while carrying a gun, washing his truck, and changing his clothes. The warrant also says that before the murder, David asked a neighbor what he could put in his uncle’s drink to kill him.

David’s father and Clifford’s brother, Steven Ward, spoke to Channel 9′s Ken Lemon on Thursday and said Clifford was close with David. He shared a cell phone video of Clifford and David joking while driving.

Steven said his brother was training David to eventually take over the farm, so there was no reason to commit murder. He says he lost his brother in a horrible way, and now he fears he is losing his son.

“I love my son,” Steven told Lemon.

According to the sheriff’s office, David is being held in the Cleveland County Detention Center with no bond. A mugshot wasn’t made available.

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