Emanuel Montez Blowe Jr., a 31-year-old African American male, was tragically killed on March 26, 2016, in Fayetteville, North Carolina. The incident occurred in the early hours of the morning at the Body Tapp strip club located on Bragg Boulevard. Police responded to a shooting at the club around 2:30 a.m. Upon arrival, officers found Blowe with multiple gunshot wounds. Another victim, Stanley Lamar Simons, also 31 and from Hope Mills, was found with non-life-threatening injuries.
Both victims were transported to Cape Fear Valley Medical Center, where Blowe was pronounced dead.
The investigation into Blowe's death led authorities to identify Derek Terrill Tolliver, a 31-year-old male, as the primary suspect. Tolliver had been on the run for over five years before being arrested on July 22, 2021, in Savannah, Georgia, on unrelated charges of marijuana possession and traffic violations. Detectives from the Fayetteville Police Department's US Marshals Task Force and Violent Criminal Apprehension Team Unit took custody of Tolliver the same day.
Tolliver faces multiple charges in connection with the 2016 shooting, including first-degree murder, assault with a deadly weapon with intent to kill inflicting serious injury, and possession of a firearm by a convicted felon. He is currently being held without bail in the Cumberland County Detention Center.
The case has been a long and arduous journey for Blowe's family, who have been seeking justice for his untimely death. Blowe's mother, Sharon Blowe, has been vocal about her desire for closure and justice for her son. The arrest of Tolliver has brought some relief to the family, but the legal proceedings and the quest for justice continue.
