Mother of slain Manassas woman speaks out as suspect faces charges
FOX 5 EXCLUSIVE - The mother of a woman murdered in a Manassas apartment is speaking out for the first time.
Police arrested the suspected killer who detectives say was trying to skip town in a stolen car.
Angela Payne told FOX 5's Shomari Stone exclusively that she is horrified after finding out her only daughter — 22-year-old Asia Payne — and her friend — 34-year-old Leann Renee Harris — were shot several times and died inside a unit at the Westgate Apartments and Townhomes.
Ms. Payne says her daughter was a kind woman who loved animals, dancing, and singing, while she grew up in Manassas.
Ms. Payne said she'd miss hanging out with her daughter and "just having fun, dancing, and the phone calls."
"I don't get any more phone calls. I don't get any more of those late-night phone calls ‘ma I love you,'" she said.
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Two women found shot, dead in Manassas apartment during welfare check
The man accused of murdering two women inside a Manassas apartment, officials say, was caught Tuesday trying to skip town.
The suspect, 36-year-old Edward James Jackson Bland, allegedly shot and killed Asia and Leann around 1 o'clock in the morning on Tuesday.
Police caught Bland after they say he carjacked someone with a gun in the apartment complex and then broke down in the stolen car hours later in Shenandoah County.
Police checked the apartment and that’s where they found Asia and Leann, suffering from several gunshot wounds.
Detectives believe the two women and the suspect knew each other, but that is still part of the investigation.
Detectives are actively investigating the incident to determine what led up to the shooting and are seeking to speak with anyone who has information to aid in the investigation.
Bland is in jail, facing several charges, including two counts of murder, and one count of carjacking.