Murder trial set to begin
By John Joyce
Published in News on October 13, 2015 1:46 PM
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Jujuan Marquis Cox
Nearly three years after investigators say he and another man opened fire on a mobile home, killing two people and injuring two others, Jujuan Marquis Cox, 30, is standing trial for murder.
Cox and the other suspect, Kevin Raiford, 32, are charged with two counts each of first-degree murder, attempted murder and assault with a deadly weapon with intent to kill, as well as 26 counts each of firing into an occupied dwelling.
Cox is the first to be tried.
Jury selection began Monday and testimony will begin today in courtroom No. 5 of the Wayne County Courthouse. Superior Court Judge Carlton Cole, of District 1 in Chowan County, is presiding.
Cox and Raiford allegedly shot and killed Anthony Jamal Kornegay, 28, and Nakiea Felicia Garner, 30, inside a trailer at 1172-B Old Mount Olive Highway on Dec. 2, 2012. Two other men were in the residence at the time and were shot but survived.
Both suspects fled the area, and Cox was captured following a 36-hour manhunt that led investigators to a Super 8 motel in Smithfield. Raiford was apprehended months later -- in February 2014 -- after a Wayne County sheriff's deputy located him walking around in the Rollingwood Estates community in the Brogden area of Wayne County.
Raiford has yet to be prosecuted and continues to await trial, and both he and Cox have pleaded not guilty, according to court records.
Assigned to represent Cox is local defense attorney Charles Gurley. Assistant District Attorney Davis Weddle is prosecuting the case. Jury selection resumed today at 9:30 a.m., after which a jury of 12 plus two alternate jurors was impaneled. Opening statements and testimony will follow.