'That doesn't happen here': Wilmington shopping center businesses react to triple homicide

In the moments following Saturday's fatal shooting, Christine Brigham, manager at Lovey’s Organic Market & Cafe, said shoppers and employees in the Landfall Shopping Center in Wilmington stood in the parking lot, watching as law enforcement arrived on scene.

Through the store's glass door, Brigham said, she could see shattered windows of the car where the shooting took place. Before law enforcement arrived, Brigham said she walked close enough to the car to see two women dead in the front seat.

While many bystanders were "disappointed and curious," Brigham said she was "surprised."

“You know, like, ‘Really? Something like this is happening here?’” Brigham said. “You just wonder what in the world would drive somebody to do that.”

Hampstead resident Wilbert Robinson, 40, has been charged with three counts of first-degree murder and shooting into an occupied vehicle after he allegedly shot and killed three of his family members in the parking lot of the shopping center, located off Military Cutoff Road, on Saturday afternoon.

The suspect then shot himself, police said, and was transported to New Hanover Regional Medical Center for treatment.

Earlier coverage: Police identify Hampstead man accused of killing mom, sister, son in Landfall parking lot

Police found the three people dead at the scene: Robinson's mother, 65-year-old Diretta Marie Robinson; his sister, 48-year-old Trina Lynnette Robinson; and his son, a 13-year-old who was not named in the police department news release due to his age.

All four lived in Hampstead.

Updates about his medical condition have not been released, and police have not said where Robinson shot himself.

Samantha Dooies, assistant to the district attorney, said Tuesday Robinson has not yet been processed into the New Hanover County Jail.

Marie Montemurro, owner at Lovey’s Organic Market & Cafe, said she wasn’t in the store at the time of the shooting but arrived shortly after. She said business Sunday was slow, likely due to the weather, but returned to normal Monday.

“It’s just sad,” Montemurro said. “Very, very said.”

Crime news: As pandemic brings 'alarming increase' in domestic violence, New Hanover agencies scramble to help

Employees at Unleashed said they heard at least four gunshots in the parking lot of the shopping center Saturday afternoon.

“We thought it was probably somebody’s car misfiring because that doesn’t happen here,” sales associate Julia Beers said.

Beers said she’s been working at the store since May and typically feels safe in the shopping center.

“I feel comfortable when I come into work, you know, it’s a good part of town,” Beers said.

Beers said several law enforcement officers arrived at the scene shortly after the shooting, and the store closed early Saturday.

The 13-year-old was a student at Surf City Middle School, and according to a news release from Bob Fankboner, communications coordinator for Pender County Schools, counselors and the school psychologist are available to talk with any students, parents or school employees.

More: Pender County offers support to classmates of murdered Surf City Middle Schooler

"The senseless loss of such a young life is difficult to understand," Pender County Schools Superintendent Dr. Steven Hill said in the release. "Any time you lose a student, regardless of circumstance, it's felt across the district. We will be here for our students, faculty and staff who need any extra support over the days ahead."

This article originally appeared on Wilmington StarNews: Wilmington shopping center businesses react to triple homicide