BLUEFIELD —
Two men are in custody, and a manhunt is underway for a third, in connection with a fatal shooting in Bluefield.
Warrants charging first-degree murder were issued Wednesday for three men in connection with the Aug. 20 shooting death of 23-year-old Derek Tabor of Montcalm. Tabor died after being shot on Fourth Street in Bluefield.
Two of the men have been located, and officers with the Bluefield Police Department and the U.S. Marshal Service are actively searching for the third suspect in Detroit, Mich., according to Lt. C.S. Myers of the Bluefield Police Department.
Myers said David Reasby, aka Dirt Bike, age unavailable, of Bluefield, was arrested in the city.
Myers said a second suspect in the case, Mitchell A. Watts, age unavailable, is currently incarcerated in Union County, N.C., on unrelated charges. Myers said authorities in Bluefield will be working to extradite Watts back to West Virginia to be prosecuted on the first-degree murder charge.
“The third individual, we aren’t going to release his name at this time, but he’s in Detroit, Mich.,” Myers said. “We have local officers working in conjunction with the U.S. Marshals to locate and apprehend the third individual.”
Reasby was arraigned Wednesday on the first-degree murder charge before Circuit Court Judge Omar Aboulhosn, who ordered the man to be held without bond.
Myers said the three arrests are the result of an investigation that has been ongoing for the past three months. Detective B.L. Hamm is the lead investigator in the case, which is continuing in cooperation with the Southern Regional Drug and Violent Crimes Task Force, the Mercer County Probation Office and the U.S. Marshal Service.
“We’ve had an extensive investigation going for the last three months,” Myers said. “Through the course of the investigation, we gathered enough information to obtain these warrants.”
Myers said he couldn’t comment on a motive for the murder due to the ongoing investigation.
However, he said the victim was familiar with at least two of the three suspects.
“They were all in and out of the area periodically since the homicide,” Myers said. “Once we got the warrants, we had information that one of them was in Detroit.”
Myers said the investigation into Tabor’s death continues, and additional charges could be pending.
— Contact Charles Owens at cowens@bdtonline.com
Local News
Related Photos
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David Reasby, age unavailable, of Bluefield, is charged with first-degree murder in connection with the Aug. 20 shooting death of 23-year-old Derek Tabor of Montcalm. Reasby was arraigned Wednesday on the charge before Circuit Court Judge Omar Aboulhosn. Photo by Eric DiNovo
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