Concerns continue after the death of an Aurora man on Wednesday in a rural area of North Carolina.
According to the Vance County Sheriff’s Office, deputies received a call around 10 a.m. on Sept. 11 about a dead person in the 200 block of Vanco Mill Road in an area near Henderson, North Carolina.
Javion Magee, 21, of Aurora, who is Black, was found “near the base of a tree in a seated position with a rope wrapped around his neck,” a news release said. The other end of the rope was attached to the tree, according to the sheriff’s office.
Magee was taken to a medical examiner for an autopsy, and the case remains under investigation, authorities said.
TikTok user scottieprimpin raised concerns about the death of her cousin Javion Magee in a video posted Thursday.
“The police officers are trying to say that he went to Walmart and purchased the rope and hung himself,” the woman said. “We obviously don’t believe that.”
The TikTok user said her cousin was in North Carolina because he drove trucks.
“This is just very devastating for my family, and we really … need to push this story out there,” the woman said.
According to reports, Vance County Sheriff Curtis R. Brame has said the investigation is continuing, but that the incident was not a lynching.
The incident happened in an unincorporated area in Vance County, which is why the sheriff’s office is investigating. The mayor of the nearest town, Henderson, offered her condolences to Magee’s family in a statement Friday.
“First and foremost, my heart goes out to the family of Javion Magee,” Mayor Melissa Elliott said in the statement. “As a mother of a Black son, I can only imagine the depth of their sorrow, and my heart is broken alongside theirs.”
She said she has reached out to Magee’s family to offer her assistance when they arrive in the area to get further information on the case. She said the community stands ready to support the Magee family as the investigation by the sheriff’s office moves forward.
“Let us not jump to conclusions but rather seek truth and healing together,” she said in the statement. “Javion’s life mattered, and we mourn with his family.”
Peter Breen of the Chicago Tribune contributed to this story.
