DAVIE COUNTY, N.C. — Davie County sheriff’s investigators said a deadly house fire in Cooleemee has been ruled a murder-suicide.
Four family members were found dead in the home on Monday. A memorial now sits on the home’s front porch – balloons, flowers, and stuffed animals.
Deputies said a man shot and killed his girlfriend and their two children – a 4-year-old and an 8-month-old.
- Mother, Ashton Brown, 26
- Daughter, Bella, 4
- Son, Brixx, 8 months
- Father, Aschod Ewing-Meeks, 26
Davie County Sheriff JD Hartman said the man then lit the house on fire and turned the gun on himself.
Investigators said the gun was still in his hand when they found his body.
New details in the case reveal what happened just hours earlier.
Surveillance video showed the family walking into the sheriff’s office lobby around noon. Investigators said the family asked to speak to an officer but didn’t say why.
Before leaving, the man asked about getting a concealed carry permit.
Thirty minutes later, the mother called 911. She mentioned safety concerns and asked to talk to an officer. Sheriff Hartman said an officer called back, talking to the father in four separate phone calls over a 20-minute span.
The sheriff said the man didn’t say what he wanted. The officer tried to get the man to come back to the sheriff’s office, but the man refused.
At 2 p.m., a witness reported seeing the mother and father arguing in the front yard before going back inside.
Fifteen minutes later, deputies would have the street blocked off as first responders swarmed the home on Junction Road. They found four bodies inside.
Investigators initially called the circumstances “suspicious.”
The sheriff’s office released the names of the family members.
The mom is 26-year-old Ashton Brown. The 4-year-old daughter, Bella. The 8-month-old son, Brixx.
The father, who deputies said pulled the trigger, is 26-year-old Aschod Ewing-Meeks.
Hartman said there was never a domestic violence report filed at the home.
“Since they moved in, which was approximately two years ago, we’ve never had a call at their house. We’ve never had a 911 call from their house. We’ve never had a deputy respond to their house,” Hartman said.
Investigators are still looking into why this happened.
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