3 people who died in a burning home in Garner had been shot, police say
A fire at a home where a 49-year-old man and two teens were found dead in southern Wake County appeared to have been intentionally set, according to a search warrant released Thursday.
After the Tuesday morning blaze, Shannon Collins and two teens police have not yet identified were found in a house at the intersection of Ten-Ten and Rand roads, but their home showed little sign of extensive damage beyond broken windows.
A fire investigator who entered the home found evidence of “three separate accelerant patterns” and two separate points of origin for the fire, the search warrant states.
Law enforcement who pulled the victims’ bodies into the front yard discovered at least one of the victims had a gunshot wound, according to the warrant. Investigators later found all three had been shot, Sheriff Willie Rowe said Thursday.
Police recovered a pistol with bullets and casings and an extended magazine from the home, according to the warrant. Detectives also searched a 2017 Subaru Impreza parked in the driveway.
The Wake County Sheriff’s Office is treating the fire as part of a homicide investigation, Rowe said, calling it an isolated incident with no cause for public alarm.
“We ask that the community continue to keep the family and friends of the victims in their thoughts and prayers,” Rowe said in a news release. “Thank you to our investigators and partnering agencies who continue to work hard.”
Police respond to domestic violence call at the home
Police responded to a domestic violence call at Collins’ house the night before the fire, public records show. It was not classified as a crime.
Two cats also died in the blaze.
The State Bureau of Investigation is helping with the investigation, working with deputies to pinpoint the cause of the fire. SBI officials said Wednesday they could provide no further details.
Collins had a criminal history dating back to his time in Oklahoma and Texas, none of it within the last decade, and none of it violent.
He worked at the Women’s Center of Raleigh as recently as 2022, but director Amy Smith said Wednesday he is no longer employed there. In a Facebook post from 2022, the center called him “naturally outgoing and engaging” as a program manager there and noted he had a “boy band” with his sons.
GoFundMe set up for the teens’ mom
A GoFundMe has been set up for the mom of the teens who died. By Thursday evening, more than $21,000 had been raised. If you’d like to donate, click here.
This story was originally published June 26, 2025 at 11:32 AM.