Off-duty Greensboro officer shot, killed near High Point

Dec. 31—GREENSBORO — An off-duty Greensboro Police Department officer was shot and killed while intervening in a crime at a convenience store near High Point Saturday, and three people have been arrested, police said.

Sgt. Philip Dale Nix was shot about 4 p.m. outside the Sheetz on Sandy Ridge Road just north of Interstate 40 while approaching two men. Details weren't released on what Nix saw the men doing. He later died at an area hospital. Nix was a 23-year veteran of the department, Greensboro police reported.

Police initially issued an alert looking for a black Chevrolet Equinox that left the Sheetz going west on I-40 but canceled it a few hours later.

Greensboro police didn't release details of the arrests but said the Winston-Salem Police Department assisted in making them.

Jamere Justice Foster, 18, was charged with first-degree murder, larceny and conspiracy to commit larceny. He was being held with no bond allowed.

Two others were arrested and charged with accessory after the fact to first-degree murder: John Walter Morrison, 28, and Z'quriah Le'Pearce Blackwell, 18.

Morrison also is charged with conspiracy to commit larceny and was being held with no bond allowed.

Blackwell's bond was set at $500,000 secured.

Additional charges may be filed as the investigation continues, police said.

The High Point Police Department assisted with the response to the shooting, and the department issued a statement expressing sympathy to the officer, his family and the Greensboro Police Department.

Gov. Roy Cooper issued a statement saying that he mourned the loss of the officer and would offer any state resources needed.

Morrison has numerous previous felony convictions in Forsyth County for property crimes, including breaking and entering and larceny, since 2020, according to the N.C. Department of Adult Correction.

The other two have no adult convictions that appear in the department's online database.