Two Accused of Random Killing of James Jordan

The mystery surrounding the death of James Jordan, father of basketball superstar Michael Jordan, may have come to an end Sunday with the arrest of two teen-agers who allegedly shot their victim during an early morning robbery three weeks ago. Police said the elder Jordan was the victim of a random act of violence.

The break in the intense two-day investigation came when calls from a cellular phone in James Jordan’s car, made after his killing, were traced, said Cumberland County (N.C.) Sheriff Morris Bedsole. Jordan’s body was identified Friday.

Arrested in Lumberton, N.C., and charged with first-degree murder were Larry Martin Demery, 18, of Rowland, N.C., and Daniel Andre Green, 18, of Lumberton.

The Jordan family, who attended an emotional ceremony Sunday at Rockfish African Methodist Episcopal Church in nearby Teachey, N.C., for the elder Jordan, made no statement about the arrests.

Authorities said Jordan was a victim of circumstance when he stopped his car alongside Interstate 74 near Lumberton on July 23. The suspects had planned to rob someone that night and were waiting by the exit when Jordan pulled off the road to rest, said Art Binder, chief of detectives for the Cumberland County Sheriff’s Department.

Authorities believe the teen-agers fatally shot Jordan in the chest with a .38-caliber bullet.

Robeson County Sheriff Hubert Stone said the murder happened about 3:30 a.m. The elder Jordan was said to be driving from Wilmington to Charlotte. Friends said Jordan told them he was scheduled to fly to Chicago the next day. Jordan regularly went to Chicago to visit his son.

This highly publicized murder case contained so many subplots that it spawned wild speculation as to what really happened. Why wasn’t James Jordan reported missing after being gone three weeks? Why was his body cremated only three days after it was found? Was being the father of one of the best known athletes in the world a factor in his disappearance?

In the end, the possible solution to the mystery was surprisingly simple. It could have happened to anyone.

“As this matter unfolds, you will find that what happened to Mr. Jordan was the kind of random violence that all the public are concerned and afraid of,” said Jim Coman, director of the North Carolina Bureau of Investigation.

“It could have been any one of us.”

Jordan was last seen July 22 in Wilmington, where he attended the funeral of a former co-worker. After the funeral, Jordan drove to Atkinson, N.C., to visit the widow and then returned to Wilmington with friends. He left Wilmington for Charlotte after a late dinner.

Although Jordan was missing for almost three weeks and his 57th birthday passed without word, his disappearance was not made public until last Thursday, four days after his luxury car was found vandalized in Fayetteville, N.C. The family had never filed a missing person report because Jordan traveled extensively.

Binder said that the car--a bright red Lexus 400--was abandoned about July 26 on a secluded dirt road. He said the killers tried to cover their tracks once they realized their victim was Michael Jordan’s father.

Still, authorities were not sure when the killers realized who their victim was. The car’s vanity license plate read “UNC0023,” referring to Michael Jordan’s uniform number and where he attend school, the University of North Carolina.

Jordan’s body was found by a fisherman Aug. 3 floating in a swampy creek in McColl, S.C., under the Pea Bridge, about 50 yards from the state line. Sheriff Stone said that the body was driven around for two hours before being dumped there, 30 miles from where he died.

Three days later the still unidentified body was cremated by order of the coroner in Marlboro, S.C., because there were no missing person reports in South Carolina or North Carolina and chances of identification seemed slim.

The Rev. Jesse Jackson has since asked Atty. Gen. Janet Reno to investigate the matter, calling the cremation “part of an organized cover-up and attempt to destroy evidence.”

It wasn’t until Jordan’s disappearance became public on Thursday that officials decided to compare dental records of the unidentified body and Jordan.

Demery and Green also were charged with one count of armed robbery and one count of conspiracy to commit armed robbery. They were being held without bail in the Robeson County Jail in Lumberton. They are scheduled to appear in Robeson County court today under tight security.

“They conspired to rob before they left home,” Bedsole said. “I don’t know if they knew who, what or where. This is what they ended up with.”

Stone said both suspects have police records. Green was paroled two months ago after serving less than two years for a conviction in Robeson County for assault with a deadly weapon with intent to kill and armed robbery.

Demery was under indictment for armed robbery.

Green and Demery were called to the Robeson County Sheriff’s Department on Sunday for questioning and were arrested there. Green lives about two miles from the spot where officials think Jordan was killed.

Green and Demery are long-time friends, said Robeson County sheriff’s Lt. Mark Locklear.

More charges might be filed against the teen-agers, said Joe Schulte, a North Carolina Bureau of Investigation agent.

Although he said police have ruled out kidnaping, “as much as there is a homicide involved, carjacking will be pursued at a later date,” Schulte said.

A weapon has not been recovered, authorities said.

Four teen-agers arrested Saturday for vandalizing the car were not connected with the murder, authorities added.

“I’m not sure that the people who stripped the car knew . . . who put the car in the woods,” Bedsole said.

Until Sunday’s break in the case, there was additional speculation that the elder Jordan’s death was linked to his son’s highly publicized gambling or James Jordan’s business problems.

Federal agents said Saturday that they were investigating James Jordan’s business dealings in South Carolina. A North Carolina newspaper reported that police said the elder Jordan owed various debts related to his company, JVL Enterprises Inc., in Rock Hill, S.C. It also was reported that the company, which manufactures T-shirts, has been named in several lawsuits alleging unpaid bills.