UNION COUNTY, N.C. — A man already in the Mecklenburg County Jail in connection with the murders of two transgender women now faces charges in Union County for the murder of a missing man, according to deputies.
Detectives said Joshua Allen was last seen alive in Marshville on Jan. 23 and a missing person report was filed on Jan. 25. On Feb. 9, the 33-year-old’s body was reportedly found in a wooded area near Wingate.
[ PAST COVERAGE: Body found in woods identified as missing Union County man ]
“There’s a lot of circumstances involved in this case that intersect between those two individuals,” Union County Chief Deputy Tony Underwood said.
According to officials, Allen’s case was pursued as a murder investigation after the medical examiner determined Allen died from multiple gunshot wounds.
Detectives said after numerous leads, they were able to connect Allen to 34-year-old Joel Brewer. According to deputies, the two were together on the night of Allen’s disappearance and no evidence was found that Allen was alive after his encounter with Brewer.
Underwood told Channel 9 that Allen and Brewer knew each other but said the motive still remains unclear.
“Obviously, the more time that goes by, the more difficult these cases are to resolve, but we’re thankful today that we can at least give Mr. Allen’s family some answers as to who did it, and we may never know the whole story -- why -- but at least we can tell them with confidence who did it,” he said.
Brewer has been charged with first-degree murder, possession of a firearm by felon and felony concealment of death by secretly disposing of a human body. Authorities served Brewer with the newest charges on Wednesday morning at the Mecklenburg County Jail where he and another man are facing charges in the murders of two transgender women -- Jaida Peterson and Remy Fennell.
Officers said Peterson was killed on Easter Sunday. She was found fatally shot at the Quality Inn hotel on Queen City Drive in west Charlotte. Detectives said Fennell, who was also a sex worker, was shot and killed on April 15 at the Sleep Inn on North Tryon Street near East W.T. Harris Boulevard.
[ PAST COVERAGE: Pair charged with killing 2 transgender women in Charlotte hotels, police say ]
In those cases, Brewer is charged with two counts of murder, two counts of possession of a firearm by a convicted felon, robbery with a dangerous weapon and conspiracy to commit robbery with a dangerous weapon.
Deputies said Brewer was previously convicted of attempted robbery with a dangerous weapon in Union County for his role in a 2011 botched robbery resulting in the shooting death of an accomplice. Detectives determined that Brewer and three additional co-conspirators planned to rob an individual suspected of selling drugs when one of Brewer’s accomplices was fatally shot by a male at the residence of the planned attack.
Brewer and his accomplices dumped their accomplice’s deceased body on the shoulder of a Monroe street following the incident.
(WATCH: 2 men charged with killing 2 transgender women in Charlotte hotels, police say)
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