Police say man killed family, self

FAYETTEVILLE -- A real estate developer shot and killed his wife and two teen children and then committed suicide in their home, police said Tuesday.

Authorities did not give a motive for the Monday night killings by William Maxwell in Fayetteville, about 50 miles southwest of Raleigh and home to theArmy's Fort Bragg.

Police said Tuesday that Maxwell, 47, killed his wife, Kathryn, and their children, Connor, 17, and Cameron, 15, before turning a gun on himself.

"Billy, if you knew him, loved his family. Everybody knew that. That's what makes this so tragic," said John Cook, pastor of Snyder Memorial Baptist Church, where every member of the family was active. "Obviously something tragic was going on for this to happen."

Friends and neighbors say the Maxwells were a friendly family who kept a meticulous yard and were active in their children's religious high school.

"They were just wonderful people," said neighbor Kay Edwards, who has lived next door since 1994, when she moved back into the home where she grew up and where her 94-year-old mother still lives. "They were just good neighbors."

Edwards said she would often see family members walking their small dog through the quiet, leafy neighborhood.

"We're just all in shock," she said Tuesday. "You could not imagine this happening."

William Maxwell was a builder and land developer who built residential subdivisions in Cumberland and Harnett counties, said John McKinney of Fayetteville, who described himself as Maxwell's business partner and friend for more than a decade.

"He was a devout Christian, and I really loved his family," McKinney said.

Richard Wiggins, an attorney for Maxwell's business operations, said Maxwell had been "concerned about a lot of things lately," including some legal matters related to a single-family subdivision he was working on. But Wiggins said those issues were close to resolution.

Shock and disbelief

"I was absolutely shocked and just could not believe anything like this could happen," Wiggins said.

William Maxwell followed his father into the residential real estate business and also owned a couple of car washes, while Kathryn was a stay-at-home mother who taught Sunday school at Snyder Memorial, McKinney and Cook said.

Years ago, Kathryn, 43, taught in Fayetteville's public schools, said neighbor and state Sen. Tony Rand, whose wife worked with her.

Connor Maxwell performed in a dance troupe and sang in the Christmas celebration at the family's church, which has about 1,800 members, Cook said. She was a senior and a cheerleader at Village Christian Academy in Fayetteville where her brother, Cameron, was in ninth grade and their father coached basketball. The school, which is affiliated with the Village Baptist Church, described Cameron as a wonderful student-athlete.

"Billy Maxwell was an inspiration to our young people as one of our basketball coaches," the school said in a statement. "Kathryn was always there as a loving mom to her family."

"We're obviously very saddened by this tragic event and we're really concentrating right now on just meeting the needs of the students and staff at the school," said Lou Nelon, the church administrator at Village Baptist. "Those kids were very well-loved and respected. They were very well-known here in town."

The neighborhood is well-manicured, and many houses sit on hilltops. A steady stream of cars drove by the house Tuesday, slowing for drivers to gape at the crime scene.