Willis Hope, age 55, was found with multiple gunshot wounds after officers were called to the 1600 block of Poole Road in Raleigh at 6:07 a.m. on September 15, 2025. He was taken to a nearby hospital with life-threatening injuries and later died. Police closed Poole Road between Raleigh Boulevard and Fisher Street as they worked the crime scene and asked the public for tips to aid the investigation.
Hours before the fatal shooting of Willis Hope, age 55, and less than a mile away, another man was shot in the 100 block of Coke Street at 4:17 a.m.; that victim survived with non–life-threatening injuries. Detectives linked the two scenes as part of the same overnight violence in southeast Raleigh.
Within days, police arrested 25-year-old Demikael Brandon Cobb and named him the suspect in both cases. He was charged with murder in the killing of Willis Hope, age 55, and with additional counts including possession of a firearm by a felon, assault with a deadly weapon with intent to kill inflicting serious injury, discharging a firearm within city limits, and going armed to the terror of the public. Authorities stated the investigation remains active.
Local reports and community memorials recorded the death of Willis Hope, age 55, on September 15, 2025, confirming the location as Raleigh, North Carolina, and identifying the case as a fatal shooting. These notices echoed the police timeline and the subsequent charges against the suspect.
