A 23-year-old woman in Charlotte, North Carolina, was the victim of a murder-suicide Monday night, four months after winning the lottery.
Dionyah Truelove Thompson and her date had exited Vinyl, a bar near Wooden Robot Brewery. They were headed towards the car when 33-year-old Elie Hugo Noel pulled up in a red vehicle, got out, and began shooting multiple times at the two. Thompson died while the man she was with had minor injuries. Thompson, according to WCNC, was Noel’s ex-girlfriend.
Family members said Thompson attempted to break up with Noel and feared he would harm her. They said she moved to a different town to escape him.
Vinyl’s bar manager told WCNC that he wasn’t aware of the shooting until a witness told the staff and staff members informed the manager.
“A customer who was on the patio had seen it,” the manager said. “They came in in a shock and a panicked state, saying somebody had gotten shot and some of my bar staff grabbed me from my office and I dialed 911. As far as I’m aware, everything was good. We’re a pretty casual place. Nobody expected anything to happen. It was the night before Valentine’s Day. Nobody expects anything to happen.”
The Charlotte-Mecklenburg Police Department reported that Noel took his life after killing Thompson.
“Detectives…have determined that Mr. Noel shot and killed Ms. Dionyah Thompson…during this incident and then took his own life,” CMPD wrote in the update. “Detectives are no longer looking for outstanding subjects.”
In October 2022, the NC Education Lottery announced the name of their scratch-off winner, which was Thompson, who bought a $5 scratch-off ticket at a 7-Eleven and ended up winning $150,000. Due to state and federal tax withholdings, Thompson’s official earning was $106,516.
Thompson’s family explained that she graduated from West Charlotte High School and described her as “funny, joyful and someone who enjoyed socializing and cooking.”
