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WINDSOR – A local man is behind bars, held without bond, for murder.

According to Bertie County Sheriff Tyrone Ruffin, 59-year-old Robert D. Wilson has been arrested for a homicide that occurred Aug. 31 at the Dollar General in Merry Hill.

Ruffin said Wilson stands charged with first degree murder and possession of firearm by a convicted felon. Wilson is confined at the Bertie/Martin Regional Jail

On Aug. 31 at approximately 9:30 pm, Bertie deputies were dispatched to the Dollar General in Merry Hill in reference to shots fired around the side of the building. While deputies were in route, they were advised that a male was lying near a vehicle where the shots came from.

Upon deputies arrival, deputies found 60-year-old William Thomas Johnson of Plymouth suffering from multiple gunshot wounds. Johnson was soon after pronounced deceased at the scene.

Ruffin thanked the North Carolina State Bureau of Investigations and local District Attorney Kim Scott for their assistance in the arrest.