Suliman Nazir Burnette, an 18-year-old Black male, was shot to death on the evening of August 26, 2025, inside the SureStay Plus by Best Western on Hillsborough Road in Durham while visiting family. Police were called just after 7 p.m.; he died at the scene. The hotel’s shattered glass and taped-off lobby became the backdrop to a crime that stunned relatives and rippled through the city’s tight-knit anti-violence circles.
In the days that followed, his father, longtime community advocate Abdul Burnette, spoke publicly about his son—remembering a bright smile and easy laughter—and pleaded for accountability. He said detectives had identified a suspect and urged that person to surrender, a father’s call for justice echoing across a community already weary from loss.
Investigators soon announced an arrest. On Friday, September 12, a 17-year-old, Dwayne Anthony Lovett Jr., was charged with first-degree murder in Burnette’s killing. According to newly filed court documents reported by local media, the gunman fired a 9mm handgun into the motel lobby, fatally striking Burnette. Lovett was being held in Cumberland County on a $1.5 million bond, with a court appearance expected the following Monday, as the Durham Police Department’s probe continued.
Weeks later, as the family endured another tragedy, local coverage again noted that a 17-year-old was facing charges in connection with Suliman’s death—evidence that the case remained active in the courts even as the community grappled with the broader toll of gun violence.
