Landlord allegedly shoots, kills tenant in Fuquay-Varina weeks after civil dispute

The Wake County Sheriff’s Office is investigating the second homicide in southern Wake County this week.

Around 9:30 a.m. a man was shot in the 8200 block of Fieldcrest Lane, according to the Sheriff’s Office.

When deputies arrived, they located Robert William Barton suffering multiple gunshot wounds, and he was pronounced dead at the scene. Barton was 49.

Jeffrey Hoffman, 63, has been arrested and charged with murder in Barton’s death.

A statement from the Sheriff’s Office said the two men knew each other prior to the shooting.

According to court documents, Hoffman was renting a property on Fieldcrest Lane to Barton. In early June, Hoffman sued Barton for $500 in unpaid rent. On June 26, Hoffman’s case was dismissed by the Wake County District Court.

This is the second fatal shooting in southern Wake County this week.

Just east of Fuquay-Varina, two people were shot in Willow Spring on Panther Lake Road on Monday evening.

Cody Armstong, 30, was killed in the shooting, and Lawrence Paul Menegay, 66, has been arrested and charged with murder.

Both Menegay and Hoffman are being held at the Wake County Detention Center.

This story was originally published August 2, 2023 at 11:52 AM.