Oil Spill Party NC | Man killed, several hurt in shooting at large college party near Zebulon, Wake County, sheriff says
ZEBULON, N.C. (WTVD) — Wake County investigators continued searching Thursday for a person they say shot five people near Zebulon following a large college party.
The shooting occurred after the Oil Spill Party, which drew hundreds of mainly college students to Todd Park near Zebulon. Neighbors and authorities said the violence happened after the event ended.
Wake County sheriff’s deputies said five people were shot around 10:40 p.m. Wednesday on West Barbee Street near Mack Todd Road.
One man was pronounced dead at the scene. Wake County investigators identified the victim as 21-year-old Lemonz Williams, who died at the scene.
People who attended the party said it began around 3 p.m. and ended around 10 p.m. They said they initially felt safe because there was a large amount of security on site.
That sense of safety changed once people returned to their cars to leave, according to those attendees. The shooting happened in fields where people had parked, neighbors said.
“I was watching TV and all of a sudden I heard this car come down the road fast and it went, ‘pop, pop, pop, pop, pop, pop,’ you know, lots of times,” neighbor Bertha Miles said.
Another neighbor, Robert Cates, spoke out against the violence.
“It’s wrong for anybody to kill somebody,” he said.
Drone 11 captured footage on Thursday morning of a large crime scene centered around vehicles left in nearby fields. Investigators later towed away a car and a pickup truck.
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Garbage and empty liquor bottles were scattered across the parking areas, neighbors said. Residents said they had never seen violence like this after an event at Todd Park.
“It’s never happened before, never happened before. I’ve been staying all that for around 15 years. But I guess, you never know,” Cates said.
One of the owners of Todd Park told Eyewitness News by phone that more than three dozen security personnel were on site. The owner also said this was the first Oil Spill Party held at the park.
Neighbors helped clean up the area and comfort the family of the man who was killed. Miles said she empathized deeply with their loss.
“I know what they’re going through. I know the feel. My heart goes out to them. And it’s, while they’re here, anything that I can do for them, I’m going to do it,” Miles said.
Miles said she lost a grandson to gun violence more than 15 years ago. She said she fears continued loss if nothing changes.
“We will continue to lose our young people. I have young grandkids, young great grandkids, and I want them to live a good life,” she said.
The Wake County Sheriff’s Office identified the victim as Williams early Thursday. Investigators have not announced any arrests.
Staff from North Carolina Central University said the party was not a university-sponsored event. They said no one from the university was involved in organizing or carrying it out.
ABC11 contacted the party’s organizers to ask whether security was present in the parking areas. They did not respond to requests for comment.
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