Randy Stewart, 61, a male and White/Caucasian locksmith and small-business owner, died on July 23, 2025, in Oak Island, North Carolina. Shortly after 6:18 p.m., Oak Island police responded to reports of gunfire at a home in the 300 block of NE 49th Street and found Randy Stewart, 61, fatally wounded at the scene. Authorities identified him as the owner of Stewart Enterprises Locksmith Service and said the shooting occurred during a service call to the residence.
Police arrested the homeowner, Brian Reed Grant, 40, and initially charged him with second-degree murder. At his first court appearance, a judge denied bond while investigators described how the encounter unfolded outside Grant’s vacation home. Reporting from that hearing noted that Grant’s attorney raised a claim of self-defense, and police body-camera footage captured Grant saying that Stewart held a knife to his throat.
Additional details from local and regional outlets confirmed the early timeline and location of the call, as well as Randy Stewart, 61, being pronounced dead on scene. A memorial listing recorded the killing on July 23, 2025, in Oak Island, and contemporaneous news coverage reiterated that officers were dispatched at 6:18 p.m. to the address on NE 49th Street.
In subsequent weeks, reporting indicated that Brian Reed Grant later secured pretrial release after posting bond and that prosecutors upgraded the charge to first-degree murder; those developments were reported in late September as the case moved forward. As of those updates, Grant remained the sole named suspect connected to the death of Randy Stewart, 61.
