Ly Teng Nhiayi, a 32-year-old man, was found dead inside a burning car in Durham, North Carolina, on July 26, 2018. The car was parked on a dead-end road near a wooded area that borders Interstate 40. An autopsy determined that Nhiayi had been shot in the back of the head before the car was set ablaze. Nhiayi's family informed the police that he acted as a go-between for marijuana growers in California and dealers in North Carolina.
They believed he was killed due to a conflict with a local dealer over a missing load of marijuana.
The investigation into Nhiayi's death led to the arrest of several suspects. Derrick Tyson, 40, of Bear Creek, Walter Thorne-Price, 29, of Durham, Reginald McClain, 28, also of Durham, and his brother, Joshua Bernard McClain, 27, were charged with murder in connection with Nhiayi's death. The police believed that Tyson hired the others to kill Nhiayi and likely paid them with drugs. During the investigation, police found more than $150,000 in cash stashed in a luxury apartment in Cary, where one of the suspects lived. They also recovered a stolen gun, drugs, and other luxury items from the apartment.
In addition to the initial arrests, a fifth suspect, Kenyawna Powell, 24, was arrested on September 19, 2019, in connection with Nhiayi's death. Powell was also charged with assault on a female, felony fleeing to elude arrest in a motor vehicle, hit-and-run, and misdemeanor possession of Oxycodone. Powell, along with the McClain brothers, later pleaded guilty to second-degree murder. Powell was sentenced to 125-162 months in prison, while Joshua McClain received a sentence of 144-185 months. Reginald McClain's sentencing was scheduled for a later date, pending the resolution of his federal case related to these matters.
The investigation revealed that Nhiayi's murder was a contract killing, likely motivated by a dispute over drugs. The suspects involved were mid- to high-level drug dealers who preferred to live in high-end apartment complexes to avoid detection from law enforcement and robbery from other drug dealers. The case highlighted the dangerous and violent nature of the drug trade in the area and the lengths to which individuals would go to protect their interests.
