5 found shot to death at southeast North Carolina home, sheriff says

CLINTON, N.C. (AP) — Five people were found fatally shot at a southeast North Carolina home early Thursday, according to the local sheriff.

Sampson County Sheriff Jimmy Thornton said deputies were called to the home off Garland Highway outside Clinton shortly before 1 a.m. for a report of a homicide found five people dead with gunshot wounds, news outlets reported.

Investigators don’t have any information about a suspect and don’t know how the people who were killed knew each other, Thornton said.

Authorities got a 911 call from a person who spoke to one victim around 11 p.m. and then found the bodies when they stopped by the home, Capt. Eric Pope said in a news conference. The victims are four men and one woman who range in age from their mid-30s to 80s, he said.

“This is not normal for our community. It is not normal for any community,” he said. “It should shock the conscience.”