1 shot, killed in car in northwest Charlotte neighborhood on Christmas Eve

CHARLOTTE — A man was killed in the Oakdale South neighborhood on Sunday morning, the day before Christmas.

CMPD says officers responded to a call for an assault with a deadly weapon just before 11 a.m. Sunday.

Upon arrival at the 1600 block of Flagler Lane, they found 40-year-old Howard Maurice Higgins dead in a vehicle.

By 11:15 a.m., MEDIC confirmed Higgins suffered a gunshot wound and died.

Channel 9′s Madison Carter spoke with a resident who said their neighborhood is usually quiet.

Franklin Dowdy said his wife was the one who heard the gunshots.

“She thought I was in the driveway messing around with my cars, and then she heard the gunshots. And then she thought I was in the back messing with the trashcans,” Dowdy explained.

However, this is the second shooting on the block in the last nine months.

Back in March, police said someone sprayed a house with bullets, resulting in a 13-year-old boy getting shot in the leg.

The victim’s mother and two younger brothers were also inside the home at the time of the shooting; however, they were not hurt.

At the time, police told us the shooting was not random, even though neighbors told us the family had only lived there for a few months.

Downdy said that despite these two incidents, he still feels safe staying there.

“It’s been like some car break-ins, some little stuff. But far as big stuff like shooting and killings, these are the only two that I know of,” Downdy explained.

Details are limited at this time, and CMPD does not have much suspect information.

CMPD says this is an active investigation.

Anyone with information about this incident is asked to call 704-432-TIPS and speak directly to a Homicide Unit detective.

This is a developing story; we will update this story as information is released.

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