Michael Dewayne Connor Jr., a 35-year-old African American male, passed away on March 3, 2022, in Salisbury, North Carolina. Born on December 22, 1986, in Salisbury, he was the son of Michael Connor Sr. and Sharon Myers. Michael attended North Rowan High School and was employed as an assembler at LAD Merchandise. He was a member of the Solid Rock Church of God and was cherished by his family and friends as a son, father, brother, and nephew.
On the evening of March 3, 2022, Michael
Dewayne Connor Jr. was found in a parking lot off Freeland Drive in Salisbury, having suffered from a gunshot wound. Despite life-saving measures attempted by the police on the scene, he was pronounced dead. The Salisbury Police Department, along with state police and other local law enforcement agencies, launched an investigation into the homicide.
Nearly two years after the incident, authorities made a significant breakthrough in the case. On March 8, 2024, Dequan Quinshaun Hairston, a 21-year-old male, was arrested and charged with first-degree murder in connection to the killing of Michael Dewayne Connor Jr. Hairston was apprehended with the assistance of the Cabarrus County Sheriff's Office and the Kannapolis Police Department. He was placed in the Cabarrus County Detention Center without bond and later transferred to the Rowan County Detention Center.
The investigation revealed that Michael Dewayne Connor Jr. was shot just before 9 p.m. on March 3, 2022, in the parking lot near a Salisbury shopping center. The police released photos of a person of interest 11 days after the incident, but it remains unclear whether this individual was Hairston. The arrest of Hairston marked a significant development in the case, bringing some measure of closure to the family and friends of Michael Dewayne Connor Jr. as they continue to mourn his loss.
