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Wingate University student killed in Winston-Salem State homecoming shooting
Peyton Patterson, a 19-year-old criminal justice student at Wingate University, was shot and killed during a homecoming celebration at Winston-Salem State University on Nov. 7. Two men have been arrested and charged in connection with the shooting, which also injured a 22-year-old woman.
A Wingate University student was shot and killed during a homecoming celebration at Winston-Salem State University on Saturday, Nov. 7, according to university officials and law enforcement.
Peyton Patterson, 19, was studying criminal justice at Wingate, the university said in a message to the campus community on Sunday. A 22-year-old woman was also shot and injured in the incident.
According to reporting by CBS affiliate WFMY, video from the scene showed a person pull a gun from their waistband and fire into a crowd. The shooting occurred on the Winston-Salem State campus during the university's homecoming festivities.
Wingate University said students were organizing a vigil, and the school plans to hold a memorial service. The university did not release further details about Patterson's background or hometown.
Following the shooting, authorities arrested 20-year-old Ziyaire Spinks and 18-year-old Cequan Brower. Spinks was charged with murder, assault with a deadly weapon with intent to kill inflicting serious injury, and possession of a gun on educational property. Brower was charged with simple affray.
Both appeared in Forsyth County court on Monday, Nov. 9. Spinks was denied bond and remained in the Forsyth County jail. Brower's bond was set at $5,000, and he was later released.
The shooting has shaken the Wingate community, a small private university in Union County about 25 miles southeast of Charlotte. Homecoming at Winston-Salem State, a historically Black public university, is typically a major regional event drawing alumni and students from across North Carolina.
Wingate officials said in their message that counseling services would be available to students. The university did not immediately respond to questions about Patterson's time on campus or any prior connection to Winston-Salem State.
The Forsyth County District Attorney's office did not return a request for comment on the charges. It was not immediately clear whether Spinks had retained an attorney.
Anyone with information about the shooting is asked to contact Winston-Salem police or Forsyth County Crime Stoppers.