AHOSKIE, North Carolina — The quiet in this small Hertford County town was shattered early Wednesday when 48-year-old Corey Lamont Brown was found dead on West Rogers Street after an apparent disagreement with a neighbor. Police say the morning turned tragic before most shops had opened, leaving a close-knit community in shock.
Officers from the Ahoskie Police Department arrived at the 200 block of West Rogers Street just after 8:20 a.m. following calls of shots fired. When they reached the scene, Brown was lying unresponsive and was pronounced dead there from an apparent gunshot wound.
Nearby, 65-year-old Leandrew Vinson was still at the scene. Police took him into custody without a struggle as the sun climbed over the pine trees along the quiet street. Investigators reported that Brown and Vinson had been involved in a disagreement moments before the shooting.
Vinson now faces a charge of First Degree Murder. He remains jailed at the Hertford County Detention Center with no bond, a magistrate confirming that his first court date is set for Friday at the Hertford County District Court.
Friends and neighbors described Brown as someone who always stopped to talk and had a friendly wave for visitors passing his driveway. “He wasn’t just a name to us,” one neighbor said. “He was part of the fabric of this street.” Many in the community have left flowers and candles near the spot where officers found him.
Police and sheriff’s investigators are piecing together the exact cause of the dispute that led to Brown’s death. Authorities ask anyone with information about the incident to contact the Ahoskie Police Department as they continue their work.
The loss has been deeply felt across Ahoskie. People who knew Brown spoke of his laughter and the warmth he brought to simple conversations. In a town where neighbors know one another by name, his absence is being mourned with a heavy heart.
