Fayetteville Crash Kills Three; Sisters Charged

On Oct. 8 a crash on the 2700 block of Rosehill Road in Fayetteville killed three E.E. Smith High School football players — Jai'Hyon Lamont Elliott (18), Trevor Jayshawn Merritt (17) and Nicholas Kole Williams (17) — when the 2024 Honda Civic they were riding in ran off the road and struck a telephone pole and a tree. Police say driver Dymond Nekiya Monroe, 21, was critically injured and has been charged with three counts of involuntary manslaughter, willful speed competition, speeding, careless and reckless driving, and an insurance violation. Investigators also charged Monroe’s sister, 19-year-old Destini Rhinada Genwright, with willful speed competition, speeding, careless and reckless driving and an insurance violation; Genwright turned herself in, posted a $10,000 unsecured bond, and police seized her 2023 Dodge Charger. Court documents and analyzed video footage show both vehicles were speeding and appear to have been racing, with the Civic recorded at about 92 mph and the Charger at about 76 mph in a 45-mph zone. Police say Genwright’s insurance had been terminated in July; the crash has prompted community mourning and a memorial, and Fayetteville police and the Cumberland County District Attorney’s Office continue to investigate with further court proceedings scheduled for December.