MURFREESBORO – What triggered a Murfreesboro man to murder two former co-workers, critically injure an innocent bystander and then fatally turn the gun on himself remains a mystery.

Three people are dead in what appears to be a double murder-suicide near Murfreesboro early Sunday night.

Meanwhile, a fourth victim, a female reportedly shot at least twice, was rushed to Roanoke-Chowan Hospital and then airlifted to Pitt County Memorial Hospital in Greenville where she is listed in critical, but stable condition.

Hertford County Sheriff Juan Vaughan reported that Larry Wayne Parker, 54, was murdered at his Hills Ferry Road residence at around 6:30 p.m. Parker was shot twice while standing on a porch.

Shortly thereafter, the gunman, 38-year-old Nash Long, drove to a residence at United Turf Inc., located on US 258 north of Murfreesboro, where he shot and killed Simon Torres Carreno, 49. Long also shot Rufina Galvan Sierra, 41, at that residence, but she managed to survive.

Sheriff Vaughan confirmed that both Parker and Carreno were employed at United Turf. He said, to his knowledge, Long was a former employee at that business.

“We don’t know what drove Mr. Long to shoot and kill two of his former co-workers,” Sheriff Vaughan said. “I understand there are a lot of rumors going around about this, but I do not deal in rumors.”

What the Sheriff was completely sure about was how this tragedy affected those left behind.

“My heart goes out to all the families involved…it’s sad, very, very sad,” Vaughan noted. “But yet this entire chain of events, while unfortunate and tragic, is so senseless.”

That chain of events began with a 6:30 p.m. 9-1-1 call to the Hertford County Sheriff’s Office saying that Long had shot Parker and left the residence on a dark colored truck.

“We later learned that Mr. Long had also struggled with Mr. Parker’s wife at the Parker residence, but she was able to escape,” Vaughan said.

At 6:49 p.m., another 9-1-1 caller reported that a truck, fitting the description of Long’s vehicle, had wrecked on the Boone’s Bridge Road, located off Statesville Road near Como. Sheriff Vaughan said as two deputies arrived at the accident scene, they heard a gunshot.

“My deputies sought cover because they thought they were being fired at,” reported the Sheriff.

Prior to the wreck, Long had allegedly drove to United Turf where he murdered Carreno and shot and injured Sierra.

“We received a call at 6:53 p.m. from a female, but our telecommunicator could not understand what the woman was saying and the caller then hung-up,” Vaughan reported. “We then received another call at 7:01 p.m. from a man, saying his brother had been shot at the turf farm.”

When Sheriff Vaughan arrived at United Turf, he noticed several individuals standing in the yard and pointing towards a residence. Inside, Vaughan and his deputies discovered Carreno laying on a couch and Sierra laying on the floor of a bedroom.

“We also investigated and confirmed that another woman inside the residence was shot at, but was not struck,” the Sheriff said.

Vaughan said he believed Long then drove out a back gate on the farm, one that directly connects with Statesville Road.

Long was found deceased inside the truck on the Boone’s Bridge. He was shot one time, a fatal wound reported as self-inflicted.