Family seeking answers about death of Chicagoland truck driver Javion Magee • The TRiiBE

The family of 21-year-old Chicagoland truck driver Javion Magee is seeking answers from authorities after the family said their son was found hanging from a tree in Henderson, North Carolina. 

However, today, during a television interview with a reporter from local ABC affiliate WTVD, Vance County Sherrif Curtis Brame said Magee wasn’t found hanging or dangling from a tree and that it wasn’t a lynching. 

Magee was in Henderson, NC, dropping off a load at the local Walmart Supercenter on Sept. 10, according to Candice Matthews, a civil rights activist and state chair for the Texas Democratic Black Caucus, who is serving as spokesperson for Magee’s family. 

Police told Magee’s family that he returned to Walmart later that day and bought items from Walmart, including a rope, Matthews said. 

According to a police report, deputies found Magee outside of a fenced-in area at the base of a tree in a seated position with a rope wrapped around his neck and the other end attached to a tree.

The family is questioning the police’s account and still has unanswered questions, one being what happened from the time Magee dropped off his load to when he was found miles away hanging from a tree.

The Vance County Sheriff’s Office initially told Magee’s mother and stepfather that Magee died by suicide, Matthews said.  

“How can you say that it was a suicide? We have not even had autopsy report. We haven’t had a full investigation,” Matthews said. “Now that all of this is out and we’re amplifying the issue, now, all of a sudden, the sheriff has put out a statement and isn’t saying that it is a suicide. Now he’s saying if anyone knows anything to reach out to Crime Stoppers hotline. We’re not going to play this game, sir.”

She added that Magee didn’t have a history of mental illness or criminal activity. “So what would make this man hang himself?” Matthews said rhetorically. “And how he was hung, it was no way that he could have done that himself.”

The TRiiBE reached out to the Henderson Police Department in North Carolina for more information. A representative explained that the case falls outside their jurisdiction and will be handled by the Vance County Sheriff’s Office, which oversees the area. Henderson, the county seat of Vance County, is located 43 miles north of Raleigh, NC. 

In a written statement, Vance County Sheriff Curtis Brame said the office received a call for service at 10:08 a.m. on Sept. 11, at 285 Vanco Mill Road, in Henderson, NC, of a deceased person. 

When deputies arrived at the scene, they saw a Black man outside of a fenced-in area at the base of a tree in a seated position with a rope wrapped around his neck and the other end attached to a tree, according to the written release. 

The man was later identified as Magee of Aurora, Illinois. He was transported to the North Carolina Office of the Chief Medical Examiner for an autopsy. The case is under investigation. 

The sheriff’s office’s written statement does not list Magee’s death as a suicide.

“We’d like to express our deepest condolences to the family. Javion was a good employee, and we’re all saddened by the loss. We’re cooperating with authorities in this investigation,” Booth Veazey, director of safety at KLLM Transport Services told The TRiiBE on Sept. 13. 

It’s unclear how long Magee was employed by KLLM. Veazey said he couldn’t comment further on the matter. 

In addition to seeking answers, Matthews said the family is demanding a transparent investigation and is looking for the federal government to investigate what happened as a hate crime. 

“We demand the Department of Justice to come in and investigate this. We demand the FBI to come in and investigate this as a hate crime,” Matthews said.

The family has retained legal representation from civil rights attorneys Lee Merritt and Harry Daniels. In the coming days, Magee’s family will hold a press conference in North Carolina. The details have not yet been shared. 

Authorities are asking for anyone with information about Magee’s death to contact the Vance County Sheriff’s Office at 252-738-2200 or the Henderson-Vance Crime Stoppers at 252-492-1925.

This is a developing story check back for updates.