Richmond County death investigation tied to fireworks, not officer-involved shooting

ROCKINGHAM, N.C. — The Richmond County Sheriff’s Office and the SBI are investigating a death that happened Thursday night near the city of Rockingham.

After receiving reports from neighbors, Channel 9 first reached out to the SBI public affairs office with questions about whether the death was tied to an officer-involved shooting. The SBI confirmed that the agency was involved in the investigation of a fatal officer-involved shooting, but that it did not have further information to provide.

Upon further investigation, Richmond County Sheriff James Clemmons told Channel 9 one of his deputies, not a Rockingham Police officer, was the first to respond to the scene. Clemmons said the deputies found a person suffering from injuries relating to fireworks, and called for help.

No shots were fired at any point, Clemmons said.

We contacted the SBI again and a spokesperson then verified what Sheriff Clemmons had said, saying field agents clarified there had not been an officer-involved shooting in the case.

The death investigation centers around what happened with the fireworks.

None of the agencies involved have identified the victim in the case.

Cox Media Group