On January 7, 2024, at approximately 2 a.m., a shooting occurred at S&M E-Juice on South Cannon Boulevard in Kannapolis, North Carolina. Upon arrival, officers found two individuals with gunshot wounds: 23-year-old Shovontae Shikim Byers of Kannapolis and 28-year-old Quentin Parhams of Concord. Both were transported to Atrium-Cabarrus Hospital, where Byers succumbed to his injuries; Parhams sustained non-life-threatening injuries.
Byers was a 2019 graduate of Concord High School, where he excelled as a basketball player. He was known for his charismatic personality and a smile that could light up a room. At the time of his death, he was employed by S&M E-Juice in Kannapolis.
Following an investigation, authorities identified 34-year-old Mark Marion Herron as a suspect. On January 20, 2024, the Charlotte-Mecklenburg Police Department's Violent Criminal Apprehension Team arrested Herron at a hotel in Charlotte. He was charged with first-degree murder and assault with a deadly weapon inflicting serious injury and was held without bond in the Cabarrus County Jail.
The investigation into the circumstances surrounding the shooting remains ongoing. Authorities have urged anyone with additional information to contact the Kannapolis Police Department.
