HICKORY, N.C. — (WCNC) Eight people have been arrested in connection with a mass shooting that killed one person and injured 11 others in Catawba County on June 1, investigators said. The most recent arrest was announced early Friday morning.
The Catawba County Sheriff's Office announced Wednesday that Garon Nathaniel Killian was charged with one count of attempted first-degree murder in connection with the case. He remains in jail under a $200,000 bond. Killian was also arrested for his alleged role in shooting into a crowd in a parking lot in April. On Thursday, a judge revoked Killian's bond in that case, which had already drawn the ire of law enforcement officials, who called it "infuriating" that someone with his violent history was out of jail to begin with.
Several of the arrests happened in a short time span after Killian's first court appearance.
On Thursday, deputies announced Zachary Bates, 22, was arrested for attempted murder. Later on Thursday, deputies confirmed Ke'Andre Mack, 19, was arrested for attempted murder in this case. Izaiah Mitchell, who is also known as Zay Harris, was also arrested on Thursday for attempted murder. U.S. Marshals arrested 18-year-old Zoe Makenna Braswell on Thursday; she is charged with one count of accessory after the fact to attempted murder.
Two additional suspects, 21-year-old Raekwon Malik Craig and 22-year-old Patrick Lee Tolbert, were arrested on charges of aiding and abetting a person under 21 years of age by allowing the possession of alcohol. Investigators said Wednesday those charges were connected to Craig and Tolbert planning the party where the shootout happened. Craig was arrested on Wednesday, while Tolbert turned himself in to authorities in Caldwell County.
Early Friday morning around 1 a.m., officials announced 20-year-old Toland Huff had been arrested on one count of attempted first-degree murder.
New charges for four of the suspects were announced late Friday afternoon. Huff, Bates, Mitchell and Mack are now all charged with 10 additional counts each of attempted first degree murder. Bond was not granted to them, and initial court appearances for them will be held on Monday, June 9.
Since the shooting on Sunday, investigators have maintained they believe there were multiple shooters. It happened around 12:45 a.m. Sunday at a home on Walnut Acres Drive in Mountain View, a small community in southwest Catawba County.
The gunfire erupted at a large, organized pool party in the Walnut Acres community, an event that was promoted on social media and drew a crowd of about 100 people. There was also an admission fee to get in before the night turned chaotic.
“In my experience, this is a complicated scene. It spans several separate individual pieces of property... larger than 2 acres," Aaron Turk, a major with the Catawba County Sheriff's Office, said. “More than 80 shots were fired.”
The deceased victim was identified as Shawn Hood, 58, of Lenoir. Investigators believe he may have played a role in organizing or promoting the event. The victims are between the ages of 16 and 58.
Some of those injured suffered gunshot wounds while others were injured fleeing the gunshots, according to officials. One person remains hospitalized with all the others having been released from medical care, the FBI field office in Charlotte confirmed on Tuesday.
“It appears that the shooting started from an elevated position, from a neighbor’s yard,” Major Turk said. “And persons that attended the pool party were also armed. And there were shots fired from those people as well… Whether they were direct return of fire, I can't confirm as I stand here... but both sides of that situation were shooting.”
Officials said that about 90 minutes before the shooting, law enforcement officers had first visited the house because of a noise complaint.
“We don’t believe that this was random... it seems to be that those that initiated the shooting were focused on the folks at the party," Turk explained.
Turk said Tuesday it appeared there was an exchange of gunfire coming from both inside the party and outside the party. Killian is accused of firing shots from outside the party back toward the crowd.
Killian was previously arrested in Hickory for another shooting. Police said he and another person reportedly fired into a crowd in a parking lot near a Chuck E. Cheese franchise in April 2025.
More than 70 people have been interviewed by investigators.
The FBI and North Carolina State Bureau of Investigation (SBI) are assisting in the investigation. Alcohol Law Enforcement (ALE) is also involved, looking into reports of underage drinking and whether any laws were broken by those organizing the party.
“These people’s lives have been changed forever... it’s memories that are going to affect them for the rest of their lives," Catawba County Sheriff Don Brown said. “We are going to work together tirelessly and diligently to identify the individuals responsible for this act.”
Authorities are asking people who live in the area of Highway 127, Huffman Farm Road, Pittstown Road, and Bethel Church Road to send camera footage to the Catawba County Sheriff's Office or the FBI.
The FBI announced Monday it was offering a $15,000 reward for information that leads to the identification, arrest and prosecution of suspects in the shooting, and anyone with information is asked to contact the Catawba County Sheriff's Office at 828-464-3112 or upload video and photos to a newly established FBI website. The FBI noted on Tuesday it had executed multiple search warrants but did not release further additional details at the time.
“I have full confidence in their abilities and that they will hold and bring the people responsible to justice," District Attorney Scott Riley said.
The shooting has left the small Mountain View community shaken, with residents questioning how such violence could occur in their neighborhood. Law enforcement cleared the crime scene Thursday evening after maintaining an active investigation for nearly a week.
"For a kid that young, what has to happen for a child that age to have a gun and to already previously shoot at people," a neighbor who witnessed the aftermath said.
Law enforcement officials had called it "infuriating" that someone with Killian's violent history was out of jail to begin with.
"Now we can drive to our driveway, before we couldn't, we had to walk with police and have them escort us to our home," Samuel Ramos, a neighbor, said.
A multi-agency investigation is currently underway, with sheriff's investigators working alongside Hickory Police Department investigators and Special Agents from the North Carolina State Bureau of Investigation.
