Mount Olive man charged in Duplin County murder

DUPLIN COUNTY, N.C. (WITN) - Deputies said they’ve charged a man with murder after a teenager was found shot on a roadway.

The Duplin County Sheriff’s Office has charged Zion Vann, of Mount Olive, with an open count of murder.

This past Saturday, deputies responded around 1:55 p.m. to a report of a man lying in the roadway of Iron Mine Road near Wallace.

Deputies said they found Ivan Cortez, 19, of Johnston County with apparent gunshot wounds. He was pronounced dead at the scene.

Investigators said they were able to determine that Cortez had been in the Princeton area earlier that day inside of a gray Dodge Magnum. They later learned that a Magnum was involved in an accident that deputies responded to.

Officials said that evidence found inside linked the vehicle and Vann to Cortez.

Vann is being held in the Duplin County jail.

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