Jurors may be seated as early as Wednesday in the first degree murder trial of Leroy Moore Jr.
Moore, 38, is alleged to have shot and killed Tony Baker during a shootout at the Sandy Ridge Apartments in October 2021. Baker was hit multiple times and transferred to New Hanover Regional, where he later died.
Moore was arrested a month later in Fayetteville by the State Bureau of Investigation and Whiteville Police. He had addresses in Fayetteville and Stanley Circle, Whiteville.
The killing was the fourth in the apartment complex in two years, and happened while the District Attorney’s Office was negotiating a nuisance abatement order against the entire property. Police were called to Sandy Ridge 29 times between January 2018 and May 2021 to reports of gunfire. The apartment complex is now patrolled by Whiteville Police. The new management company has instituted strong safety protocols as well.
The killing was the last at the complex since 2021, since the combined crackdown led by Whiteville Police.
Moore’s trial is expected to last two weeks.
