N.C. suspect arrested after missing man’s remains reportedly found cemented in barrel
02/06/2023 12:20 pm PST
SANFORD, N.C. (TCD) -- A 42-year-old suspect was recently charged after a missing 40-year-old man’s remains were reportedly discovered in a barrel.
The victim, Michael Cox, had not been seen or heard from since Christmas Eve 2022, according to the Lee County Sheriff’s Office. Nearly a month later, on Jan. 25, the Sheriff’s Office executed a search warrant at a home on Farrell Road, as well as an extended area of land nearby, where they found a "55-gallon barrel in a heavily wooded area that contained concrete and suspected human remains."
The barrel was reportedly seized, and the North Carolina State Medical Examiner’s Office identified the remains as Cox’s. The Sheriff’s Office identified Jackie Bright as the suspect in Cox’s death and arrested him on suspicion of murder.
Bright has a criminal past and was reportedly released from prison in May 2022. Prior to the murder charge, Bright was on parole and was arrested Jan. 6 on charges of possession of a stolen vehicle and controlled substance violation, according to the Sheriff’s Office. He was reportedly released on bond, and on Jan. 11, he was taken into custody again for parole violation and additional controlled substance violations.
Bright remains held in the North Carolina Department of Corrections.
The Sheriff’s Office did not specify the suspect’s relationship to the victim.
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