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Man beaten to death in Locust; pair charged after fleeing to Tennessee, police say

LOCUST, N.C. — Two people have been arrested after a man was beaten to death early Thursday in Locust, police said.

Locust police officers were called to the scene on Griffin Hill Drive after someone reported that a man had “been beaten up real bad.”

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When they got to the home, police found Eddie Wayne Love with severe head injuries on a “makeshift porch.” He was pronounced dead at 12:19 a.m.

Detectives said Love and Dakota Dylan Wensil, of Mount Pleasant, got into a fight. Wensil was named the suspect in the homicide case. Police said Lily Juanita Lefler, of Mount Pleasant, was also there during the fight.

After the beating, police said Wensil and Lefler fled to Erwin, Tennessee where they were arrested.

Wensil was charged with murder, and Lefler was charged with accessory to the crime after the fact.

No other details about the crime have been released.