CHARLOTTE — The Charlotte-Mecklenburg Police Department arrested and charged two men in connection with the Uptown mass shooting early Sunday morning. The shooting happened around 2 a.m. in the 300 block of East 7th Street near Encore Night Club.
Arleigh Bryant, 37, an Encore employee, was killed. CMPD says 5 other people were injured. Police seized seven guns.
Court records show CMPD arrested Damien Evans II, 25, and Shawn Cannon, 24.
Breaking: CMPD has arrested two men in connection with the Uptown mass shooting, according to court documents.
— Joe Bruno (@JoeBrunoWSOC9) July 15, 2025
Court records show CMPD arrested Damien Evans II, 25, and Shawn Cannon, 24.
Cannon is facing charges of Possession of Firearm by Felon, Possession of Stolen Firearm,… pic.twitter.com/ff19ckeaIa
Cannon faces charges of possession of firearm by felon, possession of stolen firearm, accessory after to murder and flee to elude.
Judge Matt Newton set Cannon’s bond at $3 million. The district attorney’s office asked for a high secured bond. Newton said Cannon’s criminal history “is nonstop.” Cannon has 12 prior convictions.
Evans was charged with two counts of possession of firearm by felon and possession of stolen firearm.
Evans is being held in jail under no bond. Newton said an officer saw Evan hold a gun, despite him not facing a shooting charge. Evans has three prior gun convictions.
Judge Newton said Evans is “the very definition of a danger to the community.”
The two criminals have not been charged with murder or for shooting a gun in this case.
“You know this was a very chaotic event,” said CMPD Deputy Chief Ryan Butler. “We absolutely believe that multiple people were involved whether they be witnesses, victims or suspects.”
A CMPD officer working off-duty at the nightclubs immediately responded to the sound of gunfire. The affidavit says the officer saw Evans holding a gun with an extended magazine in his hands. The court documents say the officer took the gun away from Evans.
According to the court documents, after the shooting a security guard flagged down a CMPD officer who was working off-duty. The security guard pointed out a silver BMW and claimed the shooter was inside and was seen pulling out of the alley. The CMPD officer approached the vehicle when the BMW was sitting in traffic on East Sixth Street. Court documents say the driver, Cannon, rolled down the window and briefly spoke to the officer before rolling it up and attempting to flee.
CMPD used its Real Time Crime Center to track the BMW on traffic cameras. Court documents state a different CMPD officer attempted to pull over Cannon and a pursuit started. The officer lost sight of Cannon but CMPD found the vehicle a short time later unoccupied at 5512 Harris Cove Drive. Police say they discovered a black hat inside the car and the hat was identical to the one Cannon was wearing when he was encountered by the first officer. Underneath the hat, CMPD found a gun with an extended magazine. The gun was previously reported stolen out of a car on June 22.
Court documents show Cannon was arrested in July 2020 in Cabarrus County for eluding arrest in a motor vehicle with three or more aggravating factors. Cannon pleaded guilty in 2021 and faced a maximum punishment of 17 months but he only served two days of confinement. He served 24 months on probation.
The affidavit says Cannon was seen in video surveillance sitting in the BMW. The BMW was parked next to where the suspect was shooting. In the video surveillance, CMPD says after the shooting, Cannon got out of the BMW and gets into the driver’s side of the vehicle while the suspect tried to run.
The shooting suspect has not been identified. Police say the shooting suspect and Evans were confronted by CMPD during the initial response but police were unaware of their involvement at the time. Police say Evans got into the car with Cannon as they attempted to flee.
CMPD says Evans was previously arrested in April 2016 for conspiracy robbery with a dangerous weapon. In August 2017, Evans pleaded guilty with a maximum punishment of 42 months but only served 108 days of confinement with 36 months on probation.
No additional details have been made available.
This is a developing story. Check back with wsoctv.com and watch Eyewitness News for updates.
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