Man gets life in prison after murdering parents, kidnapping 11-year-old

CHARLOTTE — Jurors convicted a 43-year-old man of murdering his parents and kidnapping his niece after a crime spree that ended in Washington D.C. in 2017.

According to the Mecklenburg County District Attorney’s Office, Curtis Atkinson Jr. was convicted of two counts of first-degree murder, first-degree kidnapping, conspiracy to commit first-degree murder, conspiracy to commit kidnapping, and possession of a firearm by a felon.

Channel 9 reported when the killings happened, and we learned that the 11-year-old girl was forced to watch.

According to prosecutors, Atkinson and his co-defendant, Nikkia Cooper, went to Atkinson’s parents’ home on March 30 after they were evicted from their own home that day. After an argument, Atkinson and Cooper killed them.

Prosecutors said in court previously that Atkinson stabbed his father 69 times and made his niece watch. Atkinson’s mother and father were also shot that night in the home on Glencannon Drive in east Charlotte.

The victims were identified as Curtis Atkinson Sr. and Ruby Atkinson.

According to the DA’s office, Atkinson and Cooper stayed in the house with the 11-year-old girl for several days. On April 2, they kidnapped the girl and fled to Washington, D.C. They were caught later that night.

Cooper has already been convicted in connection with the crimes.

The district attorney’s office says Atkinson was sentenced to life in prison without the possibility of parole for the murder charges, along with up to 532 months in prison for the remaining charges.

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