Two suspects have been arrested in connection with the shooting deaths of two Black trans women, Jaida Peterson and Remy Fennell in Charlotte, North Carolina, reported WSOC-TV.
Charlotte-Mecklenburg (CMPD) police have charged Dontarius Long, 21, and Joel Brewer, 33, for the murders of Peterson and Fennell. Chief Johnny Jennings called the pair “dangerous.”
BREAKING: Chief Jennings says they’ve made two arrests in the case. He calls them two very dangerous men. @wsoctv
— Tina Terry (@TinaTerryWSOC9) April 16, 2021
Police believe the men traveled together from Union County and killed Peterson and Fennell at separate times at separate hotels in the Charlotte area. They believe there are no other suspects involved in the murders of the two women.
Jaida Peterson, 29, was found dead at a Quality Inn & Suites Airport hotel on on April 4. Police found Remy Fennell, 28, on April 15 a Sleep Inn University Place. Similarities between the separate cases made investigators suspect the killings were likely the result of a transphobic serial killer in the area.
Brewer has been charged with two counts of murder, possession of a firearm by a convicted felon, robbery with a dangerous weapon and conspiracy to commit robbery. Long is charged with murder, robbery with a dangerous weapon and conspiracy to commit robbery. Authorities are still investigating the murders along with assistance from the FBI to determine whether hate crime charges can be applied as well.
Peterson and Fennell are among 15 transgender people killed so far in 2021, reported NBC News. One of the reasons this hits hard in Charlotte, said Ash Williams, a trans activist, is because “many of them use hotels as their primary form of housing, and they don’t feel safe to be there right now,” Williams said. “So, many of us are moving up to try to raise funds for safer, nonhotel housing for the Black trans women that live in Charlotte.”
Rob Tufano, CMPD’s Public Affairs Director urged sex workers and the trans community to remain “hypercautious, hypervigilant in who they’re engaged” with about their surrounding, still, despite these arrests. However, he said, “Because of the tireless work of members of the CMPD, two dangerous people can no longer prey on vulnerable members of our community. The arrests will never bring back the lives of the two innocent souls lost, but may bring some measure of peace to their loved ones.”
That does not bring much solace to the trans community that still feels vulnerable and unprotected by law enforcement as many tend to “criminalize” the Black trans community, particularly the sex workers, said Williams.
“We keep us safe,” he said. “The police do not keep us safe — they made that clear last week when they denamed and misgendered Jaida, so we don’t give a f— about what the police are talking about.”
Several area LGBTQ+ advocacy groups are fundraising to provide safer housing alternatives to hotels in hopes of protecting more trans women from harm.
