Crime & Courts

Charlotte murder suspect called 911 after shooting woman in head, police audio shows

A 24-year-old Charlotte woman was killed Sunday in what police say was a domestic violence-related shooting.

Police arrested and charged Audie Lavonda Brack Belk Jr., 28, with murder, according to a Charlotte-Mecklenburg Police Department news statement.

The suspect called 911 around 6 p.m. saying he shot his wife in the head, according to police dispatch audio obtained through Broadcastify. Paramedics found Janna Lee Barnes, 24, dead at the scene, a home on Teresa Lane, near the intersection of Pleasant Grove Road and Oakdale Road in northwest Charlotte, according to CMPD.

A GoFundMe was created to help fund Barnes’ funeral arrangements.

It’s not clear from public records if Belk and Barnes were married.

This is the third domestic-violence-related homicide in Mecklenburg County this year, according to the North Carolina Coalition Against Domestic Violence. Last year, the organization recorded only one in the county.

Darren Curry, 42, stabbed and killed his girlfriend Feb. 24 before calling 911, according to police reports.

Elie Hugo Noel, 33, shot his ex-girlfriend — and then himself — in South End Feb. 13, according to police records and NCCADV.

This story was originally published March 27, 2023 at 11:31 AM.

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Julia Coin
The Charlotte Observer
Julia Coin covers courts, legal issues, police and public safety around Charlotte and is part of the Pulitzer-finalist team that covered Tropical Storm Helene in North Carolina. As the Observer’s breaking news reporter, she unveiled how fentanyl infiltrated local schools. Michigan-born and Florida-raised, she studied journalism at the University of Florida, where she covered statewide legislation, sexual assault on campus and Hurricane Ian in her hometown of Sanibel Island. Support my work with a digital subscription
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