Police Investigating After Black Man Found Hanging in NC

Authorities are investigating the death of a 38-year-old man who was found hanging Friday in Roanoke Rapids, a case that has drawn attention because it occurred less than a week after another Black man was found hanging in Raleigh.

Demetrius Fleming was found dead at a home in the 1900 block of Roanoke Avenue shortly after 6:45 a.m. Friday, according to Roanoke Rapids police. Emergency crews found Fleming already deceased and connected to a ligature.

Police Chief Lawrence Wiggins said investigators are treating Fleming’s death as an open and “equivocal” death investigation. 

Authorities have not determined whether the death was a suicide or the result of criminal activity, and an autopsy is pending. Wiggins urged the public not to make assumptions while investigators work to establish what happened.

The case is not the first reported hanging death involving a Black man in North Carolina this month. On Aug. 15, a 32-year-old Black man was found hanging from a tree in downtown Raleigh. 

Raleigh police later said their investigation found no evidence of foul play and determined the death was a suicide. The case remains under review by the state Office of the Chief Medical Examiner.

The two deaths have fueled concern and speculation in communities and online, but authorities have not said the cases are connected. 

Wiggins acknowledged the significance of Fleming’s death but emphasized that investigators are pursuing evidence rather than a predetermined conclusion.

Fleming’s death remains under investigation. Police have asked anyone with information that could help investigators to come forward.

Police Investigating After Another Black Man Found Hanging in NC was originally published on foxync.com