Columbia County Sheriff’s Office, Magnolia Police Department and Southern Arkansas University Police Department are investigating the shooting deaths of two persons in the early morning hours Sunday at the Veterans of Foreign Wars (VFW) Hut on Hwy. 82 East.
The victims were identified as Brandon T. Hobdy, 23, from Garland, Texas, a student at SAU, and Wayne Payton, 24, of McNeil, a former SAU student. Hobdy was a senior wide receiver on the SAU Mulerider football team.
Columbia County Sheriff Mike Loe, MPD Chief Glenn Maxwell, and SAU Police Chief Anthony Williams addressed the issue and answered questions from the media at a press conference Monday afternoon at the sheriff’s office.
Loe said a criminal investigation was launched by the sheriff’s office, working in conjunction with MPD and SAU. “We decided to do a joint investigation, which is fairly common in our community,” he said.
This morning, a press release was issued from Loe and Maxwell, announcing an arrest.
“On Aug. 25, at 11:35 p.m., investigators from Columbia County Sheriff’s Office and Magnolia Police Department arrested Byron Lavell Dunn, 20, of Magnolia, and charged him with terroristic act concerning the shooting incident at the VFW on the 24th. Bond is set at $1 million, and he is currently awaiting first appearance before a judge. The investigation is still ongoing.”
“We interviewed quite a few who were at the party. That is ongoing. Leads are coming in fairly slow on this case.”
— Columbia County Sheriff Mike Loe
During Monday’s press conference, Loe said authorities are still trying to ascertain if the two victims were specific targets. “We’re investigating it as a random shooting at this time,” he said.
Maxwell spoke first, expressing condolences to the families of the victims.
Maxwell stated that around 1:13 a.m. Sunday, Central Dispatch received a call reporting a fight at the VFW Hut. Officers from the CCSO, MPD, and SAU-PD responded. While enroute to the call, Central Dispatch advised that a call had come in reporting gunshots had been fired. Upon arrival, officers were able to locate one victim, Hobdy, who had been wounded as result of the shooting. Authorities were informed by bystanders that a second person, Payton, had been wounded and transported by private vehicle to Magnolia Regional Medical Center. Both subjects were later pronounced dead at the hospital.
Responding to a question about leads in the case, Maxwell said it was still an ongoing investigation and he was not able to disclose any information on leads that authorities are pursuing. “This is still an ongong investigation and we are unable right now to disclose any leads that we have. We are pursuing (the case) vigorously, trying to get it solved,” he said.
Maxwell said at this time, he was unable to disclose the type weapon used. Though it is unknown how many shots were fired, he acknowledged there were “multiple shots.”
He said it is not known at this time how many people were inside the building.
It is believed this was a “back to school” type party, but was not sponsored by SAU or a university-related organization. Maxwell said that some, but not all, of the guests at the party were students.
The building belongs to the VFW organization, but it unknown at this point what individual or group of individuals were responsible for securing and renting the building. According to Loe, parties are held at this building but this is the first homicide that he could recall at the VFW building.
When asked if alcohol was served, Loe said “you’re not supposed to serve alcohol at the event.” However, he added, alcohol could be brought to the premises and concealed in vehicles.
Loe said he understood there were fliers posted about the party, but he personally had not seen them.
The sheriff said he was not aware of any on-site security at the event. When asked if he thought security was needed, Loe said “If you are going to hire security you need to hire somebody who can handle a potentially volatile situation.”
Loe said that authorities have some video footage that has been secured as evidence and are reviewing it.
“We interviewed quite a few who were at the party. That is ongoing,” Loe said. “Leads are coming in fairly slow on this case. We’ve been working ‘round the clock since it happened, trying to identify people that were there.” He said one of the main roadblocks in the investigation is “getting people to cooperate.”
When asked if any arrests were imminent, Loe replied that “we plan on making an arrest but I cannot give you a time.”
Williams emphasized that safety is always a concern on the SAU campus. “In general, we’re always concerned with the safety of our kids. This just puts us in a position where we need to heighten our awarenss regarding safety.”
The question was asked that with both victims having ties to SAU, was there a concern about any retaliation or reprisal on campus.
“Any acts like this we always fear there may be retaliation,” Williams said. “We prepare ourselves as best we can. I’ve been working with the Columbia County Sheriff’s Department as well as the Magnolia Police Department to make sure that our campus is secure.”
Williams said he broke the news to Hobdy’s mother and to his teammates. “That’s probably one of the most difficult things that we do in leadership positions in police departments and sheriff’s departrments,” he said. Williams said he was assisted by the Garland (Texas) Police Department in notifying Hobdy’s mother.
Such parties are often advertised by printed fliers, as well as by social media. “We try to do our best - and we will do our best - to work in a cooperative partnership with the local police department as well as the sheriff’s department,” he said. “And if we can find out the information through social media or fliers being distributed, then again we will work in concert with one another to address those issues.”
“Social media is a very useful tool for law enforcement in terms of finding clues and evidence,” Williams said. “Our perspective is a little bit different. For a lot of people, it’s just informational. For us, it’s investigative.”
The investigation is being handled by the CCSO. Anyone with information on the case or the investigation is encouraged to contact the sheriff’s office.