SOUTHPORT, N.C. (WTVD) — As the Southport shooting is still under investigation, there is still no known motive. However, people in the community and a series of lawsuits filed by the suspect are raising red flags about whether there could have been potential warning signs.
In the coastal town of Southport, the community is mourning the loss of life at a favorite waterfront spot, The American Fish Company.
“A complete shock,” said retired FBI special agent Frank Brostrom.
Brostrom has spent a lot of time in Southport, and said what was even more surprising was the way the shooting was carried out.
“It was an attack from the water, from a boat. I don’t know if I’ve ever heard of that,” he said.
The Coast Guard was able to catch the suspect, Nigel Edge.
Authorities said the Marine combat veteran had been dealing with PTSD.
“They’re going to look at his military record, a ton of interviews, the witnesses, forensics on the boat., They want to know his social media. You know, did he leave any kind of note behind, any manifesto of any sort? But what would the target be? What would be the political or even nonpolitical target of tourists eating on the water and in a nice restaurant,” Brostrom said.
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But Edge was already known to the police and locals.
A search of North Carolina court records found that just in the past year, he filed several civil lawsuits against local doctors and a church that were dismissed, but were filled with conspiracy theories, and Edge claimed people were out to get him.
Governor Josh Stein weighed in on Sunday, saying more needs to be done to intervene.
“There are people out there struggling with psychosis and schizophrenia, and we need to treat them so they don’t harm people in the community, they do not harm themselves,” he said. “We’ve got to do a better job dealing with severe mental illness; we’re not doing that right now, and we need to do better.”
Stein also mentioned the other recent case where a woman was killed in Charlotte.
Now, as the community begins to process this attack, they are also hoping to stop this kind of thing from happening again.
“I’ve been through this numerous times where family knows the person has an issue. Nobody wants to commit the person,” Brostrom said. “But maybe when all these mass shootings start scaring enough people, family members and close associates will start taking some action. That is a preventable option for people with PTSD.”
Edge is being held without bail at the Brunswick County Jail, and his first court appearance is scheduled for Monday.
Meanwhile, Gov. Stein is set to visit Southport on Monday.
