SAA event in United States of America on Tue 27th January 2026

Three family members were killed in a shooting and knife attack in Fayetteville and a man is now facing three counts of first-degree murder in the case.

Fayetteville police say they responded to reports of shots fired around 9:30 p.m. Sunday on North Sumac Circle.

When they arrived, police say they found a man and a woman who had been shot. They have been identified as 50-year-old Cheri Smith and her son 25-year-old son Erin Poole.Both died at the scene.Police also say 23-year-old Amanda Smith was found with gunshot wounds.

She was taken to a hospital where she later died.The man charged with the murders is 25-year-old Nijyle Lewis who was a known associate of Cheri Smith.Investigators believe the two got into a fight, shots were fired, and then Lewis was stabbed.

He was taken to a local hospital for treatment.Eyewitness News obtained doorbell camera video from the block during the incident. Investigators are reviewing the footage as part of the case. Gunshots can be heard in the video.Nearby neighbors described hearing the gunfire late at night."It was like pop, pop, pop, pop. And then it was over," said Joe Brown, who lives nearby.

Brown said he initially thought flashing lights outside were caused by a storm.

"I was sitting there watching TV, and I kept seeing the blue light flash, and I thought, 'Is that lightning because of the storm? I looked out the window, and all the way down the block, there were police cars; there were 10 to 12 police cars. So I came outside and I seen an ambulance pull up and I seen them bring a body out of that house on a gurney," Brown said.

Ring camera video shows moments leading up to the altercation. Several rounds of gunfire can be heard, followed by a brief silence before additional shots are fired."I haven't really heard gunshots like that, like really ever. And hearing it so close to the house, it was just that was really nerve wracking because we know the people that live there," said Mariacristina Southern, another nearby neighbor.Brown, who said he has lived in the neighborhood for 60 years, expressed shock at the violence."I was like, What's going on? Because those people basically stayed to themselves.

There's a man there. He's always out working on cars and stuff. I just never seen him have any problem with anybody," Brown said.Neighbors who personally knew the family described them as close and caring."A very close-knit family. I mean, they definitely loved each other, even just talking to the mom.

She absolutely adored her kids. And she was so proud of them," Southern said.The investigation remains ongoing.