Murder investigation puzzles Mooresville police

By Michael Handy - bio l email

MOORESVILLE, NC (WBTV) - The investigation into who killed a Mooresville father continued Wednesday night.  Matthew Stewart, 31, was killed for no apparent reason, and his wife who survived describes the shooter as a silent killer.

Angela Stewart told police an intruder came into her bedroom and started shooting without ever saying a word.  She said she has no idea why anyone would target her family.

Police said It does not appear that anything was stolen from the home, and it is possible this was a random murder.

The police chief said he is not ruling anything out, but he also said that neighbors in the Gabriel Estates subdivision should not be overly concerned.

The house where it all went down still was surrounded by yellow crime tape on Wednesday night, and that is because the investigation is far from complete.

Angela's mother described the family as picture-perfect.  It was all shattered in a matter of minutes.

"Matt was the most wonderful guy you'd ever want to meet in your life," said Brenda Haire.

Matt and Angela both are registered nurses.  Haire said they were married 8 years ago and were the model couple.

"They're great, they're marvelous," said Haire.

It is a description heard over and over from everyone in the subdivision, including the neighbor who helped Angela dial 911.

"She rang the doorbell, and then she come to the door, and she looked at me and said she'd been shot," said Mike Lawson.

Lawson said Angela was carrying her two-year-old son, and they were both covered in blood.  Lawson added that Angela never mentioned her six-year-old daughter was still sleeping inside.

"When the police finally went into the house, they got her first," said Lawson.  "We were looking through the window, and we saw the police officer... come out the front door with her."

Lawson later learned that Matthew had dead, but nearly two hours had gone by as SWAT teams surrounded the house.  No one knew if the intruder was still there.

"He's a cold-blooded killer," said Haire.  "He had no mercy whatsoever."

The couple's oldest daughter was spending the night with a friend who lives down the street.  The family is staying with Angela's mother as they wait to hear more from police.

Detectives have interviewed Angela, but she was not able to give any kind of suspect description.  If you know anything about this murder, call Mooresville Police at (704) 664-3311.