ASHEVILLE, N.C. (828newsNOW) — A 28-year-old man accused in a Buncombe County triple homicide appeared in court Friday morning, where a judge ordered him held without bond after prosecutors described a violent attack that left three members of the same family dead.
Devan Oneal Loving, extradited Thursday from Tennessee, faces three counts of first-degree murder, one count of conspiracy to commit murder and one count of child abduction in connection with the deaths of Travis Eugene Grant, 41; Kimberly Michelle Grant, 42; and Sharon Harwood Grant, 66.
During the brief hearing, Loving was told that the murder charges are Class A felonies punishable by either death or life without parole under North Carolina law. The conspiracy charge carries a potential sentence of up to 484 months in prison.
Loving quietly asked for a court-appointed attorney, a request that was granted.
Prosecutors then argued Loving should remain jailed without bond, calling him a danger to the community and a flight risk.
Assistant District Attorney Amy Buchanan told the court that Loving and co-defendant Star Grant allegedly shot and stabbed all three victims inside the family’s Fairview home before taking wallets and a firearm and fleeing the state.
“They then took their wallets, as well as a firearm, and fled the state,” Buchanan said in court. “They were found days later in Gatlinburg, Tennessee.”
Buchanan also told the court that both suspects later spoke with investigators and admitted involvement in the killings.
A judge ruled that the state’s request for no bond met the legal standard under North Carolina law for violent offenses and ordered Loving held without bond pending trial.
His probable cause hearing is scheduled for June 4.