Overview of The Deck: Terrance “Konomi” Plummer, “Ace of Spades,” North Carolina
This episode of The Deck follows the long-unsolved 2010 murder of Terrance “Konomi” Plummer in Fayetteville, North Carolina, and the painstaking investigation led by Lt. Jeff Locklear. What initially looked like a brutal, isolated homicide in a hot, abandoned duplex became a 13-year cold case—until a renewed look at existing forensic evidence finally identified the killer and brought Plummer’s family the closure they had been waiting for.
The Crime Scene and Initial Investigation
Discovery of the murder
- Plummer was found dead on Memorial Day weekend in 2010 in an abandoned duplex in the Bonny Doon neighborhood of Fayetteville.
- Lt. Jeff Locklear arrived to find an extreme crime scene: severe heat, no power, blood throughout the room, and signs of a prolonged, deliberate attack.
- Investigators quickly determined this was not a robbery; money was found in the bathroom.
Nature of the attack
- The murder was described as especially vicious and methodical.
- Plummer suffered multiple stab wounds and injuries that indicated torture rather than a simple assault.
- The cause of death was blood loss from multiple injuries.
Why the Case Was So Hard to Solve
A chaotic evidence environment
- The room functioned as a shared space used by multiple people, including sex workers.
- Investigators collected a large amount of evidence: condoms, cigarette butts, beer cans, bedding, fingerprints, and DNA samples.
- Because so many people used the space, sorting relevant forensic evidence was like “DNA whack-a-mole.”
Community context
- Locklear spent significant time building trust in the sex worker community to get tips.
- Several people described a man who acted like a cop, intimidated sex workers, and had a history of rough behavior.
- Despite many leads, nothing clearly connected anyone to the crime at first.
The Key Breakthrough: A Bloody Palm Print
The original clue
- A bloody palm print on a sink turned out to be the key piece of evidence.
- At first, Locklear believed it would quickly identify the killer.
- But the print did not match anyone in the databases available at the time, and the investigation stalled.
The overlooked issue
- Years later, at a cold case conference, another forensic expert suggested the original print may have only been compared against a local database.
- Locklear had it rerun through updated systems that could query more broadly.
The result
- The print finally matched a suspect: Joshua Aaron Richardson.
- Richardson had been a 28-year-old soldier at Fort Bragg in 2010 and later amassed a criminal record after leaving the military.
Resolution and Arrest
Richardson’s connection to the case
- When questioned in 2023, Richardson admitted he had been at Fort Bragg and had visited strip clubs in the area, but denied knowing Plummer.
- The fingerprint evidence contradicted his account.
- After the match, Fayetteville police obtained a warrant and Richardson was arrested in Houston.
Legal outcome
- Richardson was indicted and ultimately accepted a plea deal.
- He was charged with first-degree murder but pleaded guilty to second-degree murder.
- He is now serving a North Carolina prison sentence, with a projected release date in 2038.
Impact on Lt. Locklear and Plummer’s Family
Locklear’s obsession with the case
- Locklear described Plummer’s murder as his “white whale” case.
- He kept the file with him even after promotions and a move away from homicide.
- Solving the case after more than a decade was deeply personal and professionally meaningful.
Family response
- Plummer’s father emphasized that his son was a human being loved by his family, regardless of his circumstances.
- After the arrest, Locklear called the family to tell them the case was finally solved.
- The family expressed gratitude that he never gave up.
Main Takeaways
- Cold cases can be solved with evidence already in hand if forensic systems improve or evidence is rerun.
- Community trust matters: Locklear’s persistence and outreach were essential to building leads.
- Forensic evidence can outlast dead ends: a single palm print eventually broke the case open.
- Families need continued advocacy: Plummer’s father urged others to keep asking about retesting and never let a case be forgotten.
Final Message from the Episode
The episode closes with a strong reminder for families and investigators alike: rerun old evidence. What once seemed like an unsolved murder was ultimately cracked by revisiting a clue that had been there from the beginning.