Angelo Markantonaki
KANNAPOLIS, N.C. — Three men have been charged in connection with the 2024 Christmas Eve shooting death of a 26-year-old Kannapolis man following an investigation lasting nearly 20 months, police announced Wednesday.
Kannapolis Police said Justin Javan Roberts, 40, of Kannapolis, was taken into custody Wednesday in Charlotte. He is charged with first-degree murder, first-degree kidnapping and robbery with a dangerous weapon.
Deonandre Isaiah Potts, 26, of California, and Antonio Martez Woodard, 36, of Charlotte, face the same charges. Both men are currently incarcerated in California and are awaiting extradition to North Carolina, according to police.
The charges stem from the death of Angelo Markantonakis, who was found shot inside his home at 303 Windy Rush Drive on Dec. 24, 2024.
Officers responded to the residence around 11:30 a.m. and found Markantonakis suffering from gunshot wounds. He died at the scene.
Police said during the initial investigation that three masked suspects were being sought and investigators believed the shooting was targeted.
Additional details about the circumstances surrounding the killing emerged as the investigation continued.
In August 2025, North Carolina Gov. Josh Stein announced a reward of up to $25,000 for information leading to the arrest and conviction of those responsible.
According to the governor’s office, three masked people entered the home Markantonakis shared with his girlfriend and their 3-year-old son. Markantonakis was shot twice and killed in front of his family.
The reward increased the amount previously offered as investigators continued seeking information about the case.
Kannapolis Police have not publicly disclosed a suspected motive or detailed what investigators believe each defendant did during the incident. The kidnapping and robbery charges indicate investigators believe additional crimes occurred during the encounter, though the allegations supporting those charges have not yet been publicly detailed.
The U.S. Marshals Service assisted Kannapolis investigators in locating the three men after they were identified as suspects, police said.
Roberts was located and arrested in Charlotte on Wednesday. Potts and Woodard will have to be returned from California before their North Carolina cases proceed.
Woodard has previous criminal history in California. Court records show a man with the same name was previously convicted in Butte County of kidnapping and first-degree burglary of an occupied residence. Current Butte County jail records also list Antonio Martez Woodard as having been booked in October 2025 on a parole violation.
Police have not said whether Woodard’s previous California case has any connection to the Kannapolis investigation.
No detailed information about Potts’ current incarceration in California was immediately available.
The arrests mark the first time Kannapolis Police have publicly identified suspects in Markantonakis’ death since the investigation began on Christmas Eve 2024.
The case remains subject to court proceedings. Roberts, Potts and Woodard are presumed innocent unless proven guilty.
