Second man charged with murder in killing of Wake County deputy
A second man is now accused of murder in the killing of Wake County Deputy Ned Byrd this month.
Alder Alfonso Marin Sotelo, 25, was indicted Tuesday on a murder charge in Byrd’s death. The 48-year-old deputy was found dead from multiple gunshot wounds Aug. 12 on a rural road in southeastern Wake County.
Alder Alfonso Marin Sotelo’s older brother, Arturo Marin Sotelo, 29, who was charged by the Wake County Sheriff’s Office on Thursday with killing Byrd, was also indicted on the murder charge by the grand jury Tuesday.
The grand jury process is secretive. It involves 18 jurors who are selected to serve for about 12 months. At least 12 jurors have to present to have a quorum. Twelve jurors must agree to issue a charge, or a true bill of indictment. Typically, one person, often the lead investigator, will testify before the grand jury.
If convicted of murder, the brothers would face a sentence of life in prison or the death penalty. District Attorney Lorrin Freeman has said she will decide whether to seek the death penalty in 90 days.
Byrd, a K-9 officer and 13-year veteran of the sheriff’s department, was found outside his unmarked Sheriff’s Office SUV around 1 a.m. Friday, Aug. 12, near a gas station on Auburn Knightdale and Battle Bridge roads. He was wearing a protective vest, and his canine partner, Sasha, was still in the SUV.
Sheriff’s Office spokesperson Eric Curry said Byrd had responded to a domestic incident in that area around 11 p.m. Thursday, Aug. 11.
After deputies respond to a call, they typically pull off to a safe location and enter their notes from the incident, which Byrd did, Curry said. At some point, dispatch tried to check in with Byrd, but he didn’t respond, Curry said. Deputies tracked his vehicle, and another deputy sent to the location found Byrd’s body, Curry said.
Before the murder charge, Alder Marin Sotelo was being held last week in Forsyth County on a federal charge of “possession of a firearm by an illegal alien” that stemmed from a 2021 traffic stop by a state trooper in Chapel Hill. He remains at the Forsyth County jail, according to jail records.
Arturo Marin Sotelo is being held at the Wake County jail. A judge denied him bail last week.
Over the last five years, one or both brothers are listed as living in Garner, Raleigh, Apex and Winston-Salem, according to court documents.
How were they identified
Multiple state, local and federal agencies helped the Wake County Sheriff’s Office in identifying and arresting the men.
The brothers were stopped and taken into federal custody in Burke County on Aug. 16 as they were traveling westbound on Interstate 40 in a black Chevrolet Tahoe and a gold Cadillac Escalade.
The two men were identified after federal officials were able to analyze cell phone usage in the area where Byrd was found dead and narrow down the suspects, a person familiar with the investigation said.
Once federal officials identified the suspects and their location, they put them under surveillance and followed them to Burke County, where they were taken into custody on federal detainers.
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This story was originally published August 23, 2022 at 3:36 PM.
