Woman pleads guilty to harboring an escapee
The great-aunt of a man accused of killing a Shelby teen had her day in court last week.
Kenisha Shunta Haynes pleaded guilty to felony harboring an escapee.
The Lenoir woman gave Santana Almont Eaves a place to stay when he was eluding police who had a warrant for his arrest.
Eaves, 21, of Shelby, is accused of gunning down a Shelby teen in November 2021.
Skyteria “Eva” Poston was sitting in a car in front of her Roberts Street home in Shelby with at least one other person around 4 p.m. on Tuesday, Nov. 9, when shots rang out.
Her mother and two sisters were inside the house. When they heard the gunfire, the three women hit the floor, and one called 911.
The sisters say they opened the front door to see Poston collapse on the porch after being shot in the back.
The teen was taken to Atrium Health-Cleveland where she was pronounced dead.
By the next morning, warrants were issued for Eaves. As he continued to elude arrest, the U.S. Marshals Service stepped in and offered a $5,000 reward.
Working in tandem, the U.S. Marshals Service, the Cleveland County Sheriff’s Office and the Shelby Police Department conducted interviews and fielded tips from the public before locating Eaves.
Eaves is being held in Gaston County jail on charges of first-degree murder and discharging a weapon into an occupied property.
Haynes entered her guilty plea Friday in Cleveland County Superior Court.
She received a suspended sentence and two years of probation.
Diane Turbyfill can be reached at dturbyfill@shelbystar.com.
This article originally appeared on The Shelby Star: Woman pleads guilty to harboring an escapee
