A 38-year-old Durham man is facing a first-degree murder charge after police say he blocked his ex-girlfriend’s car on a South Durham road, got out of his car and fatally shot her.
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Lontrel Alston was arrested in the Saturday death of Victoria James, 43. In addition to first-degree murder, Alston is charged with two counts of assault with a deadly weapon with intent to kill, discharging a weapon inside an occupied vehicle, and habitual misdeameanor assault.
Durham police confirmed the shooting was domestic in nature, noting James and Alston were previously in a relationship.
The fatal incident happened about 1:30 p.m. Saturday in the 5300 block of Revere Road. According to the Durham Police Department, James was driving a Mitsubishi Outlander south toward Sedwick Road with two passengers, another adult woman and a 16-year-old boy. Police have not released their identities.
Investigators say Alson, driving a Chevy Trailblazer, pulled in front of James’ car, forcing her to stop. He then got out of his SUV, approached James and fired into her car.
James was pronounced dead at the scene. The adult woman was taken to a local hospital with non-life threatening injuries. The teenager was not harmed, police said.
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The area is in Durham’s Parkwood neighborhood, just south of Interstate 40 and N.C. Highway 54.
The domestic incident adds to the city’s gun violence this year. As of Sept. 5, there had been 366 shootings in Durham where 131 people had been shot, according to the department’s recent data. Seventeen of those shootings were fatal.
Anyone with any information about the Saturday shooting is asked to call Investigator D. Hall at 919-560-4440 ext. 29319 or CrimeStoppers at 919-683-1200 or online at www.durhamcrimestoppers.org.
This is a breaking news story and will be updated as more information becomes available.
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This story was originally published September 13, 2026 at 2:09 PM.