Grand jury adds charges in UNC student killing

HILLSBOROUGH, N.C. — Armed robbery and kidnapping charges were levied Monday against the two men accused in the fatal shooting of former University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill student body president Eve Carson.

Demario James Atwater, 22, and Laurence Alvin Lovette Jr., 17, were indicted by an Orange County grand jury on charges of first-degree kidnapping, felonious larceny, armed robbery and felonious possession of stolen goods, said Orange County District Attorney Jim Woodall.

Atwater also faces charges of possession of a firearm by a felon and possession of a weapon of mass destruction, in this instance a shotgun, Woodall said.

Atwater and Lovette are already charged with first-degree murder in the March 5 shooting death of Carson, whose body was found in a residential street in Chapel Hill not far from the university's campus. The Athens, Ga., native had been shot five times, including once to her head with a shotgun, according to an autopsy report.

Prosecutors are expected to say whether they plan to seek the death penalty against Atwater during an Aug. 11 court hearing. Lovette cannot be executed because of his age.

In search warrants, authorities said a confidential informant told police that Atwater said he and Lovette entered Carson's home through an open door, took her and her vehicle to an ATM, and ended up withdrawing about $1,400 over two days. Investigators confirmed the dollar figure by reviewing Carson's bank records.

Prosecutors, however, have not confirmed that account. Woodall emphasized Monday that a kidnapping charge does not necessarily mean Carson was taken from her home.

The informant also said Carson was shot by both suspects, according to court documents released late last month. An affidavit signed by an investigator said two separate weapons were used in the shooting. The search warrant said police believed Carson was shot several times by Lovette and once by Atwater.

Lovette also is charged with first-degree murder in the death of Duke University graduate student Abhijit Mahato, who was found dead Jan. 18 in his apartment near the university's campus in Durham, about a 20-minute drive from Chapel Hill.

An autopsy showed Mahato, 29, had been shot once at point-blank range in the forehead. Stephen Oates, 19, of Durham, also is charged with murder in Mahato's death.

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