Samantha Haines, Daniel Faircloth (via Facebook), and Haines (inset) in a Sampson County Detention Center mug shot
An Autryville, North Carolina, pastor was stunned to see a woman covered in blood appear out of nowhere in a red Ford Mustang as he was closing his church on Sunday night.
Samantha Haines, 31, told that pastor she believed she tried to kill someone and urged him to call 911, according to local NBC affiliate WRAL.
“I asked her what was going on and she said that she thought she had hurt someone,” Mt. Carmel Church of God of Prophecy pastor Bryan Strickland reportedly said. “She thought she had tried to kill someone.”
After the Sampson County Sheriff’s Office arrived at the scene and spoke with the “in distress” woman, they realized the red Mustang belonged to someone else: 32-year-old Daniel Faircloth of Rose Bud Lane. This led deputies right to Faircloth’s body, which was found outside of his residence, authorities said. He had been stabbed to death.
“Upon their arrival, deputies engaged with the distressed female, who was later identified as Samantha Haines. She was found operating a red Ford Mustang in the church’s parking lot. Ms. Haines reiterated her belief that she may have been responsible for a person’s death, but due to her unfamiliarity with Sampson County, she could not provide specific details about the location of the incident,” the sheriff’s office said.
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When deputies linked the vehicle to Faircloth’s Roseboro-area address, it didn’t take long for them to find the victim dead. The residence is around a three-minute drive away from the church.
“The circumstances leading to this tragic incident remain unclear, and our investigation is currently ongoing,” authorities said, adding: “We will continue to diligently investigate this matter to establish a clearer understanding of the events that transpired.”
Who was Haines to Faircloth? WRAL said family of the victim believed the suspect was homeless and living at Faircloth’s Roseboro residence without paying rent, but the family members reportedly didn’t know Haines beyond being aware that she and Faircloth were Facebook friends.
A search of Faircloth’s account does show that he is friends with a Samantha “Hines” — one letter off from Haines, the spelling provided by authorities.
Samantha Haines (L) via Facebook; (R) the church parking lot where the suspect flagged down a pastor (WRAL/screengrab)
Jail records reviewed by Law&Crime show Samantha Margret Haines was booked at 1:35 a.m. on Monday into the Sampson County Detention Center, where she remains held without bond on a murder charge.
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