Smithfield, NC: Suspected Smithfield shooter was charged with threats, assault

Posted: 4:22 p.m. yesterday
Updated: 5:51 p.m. yesterday
A man accused of killing his estranged wife and wounding her stepfather in a Thursday shooting in Smithfield had been charged with making threats against his wife, court records show.

Aldolfo Reyes Maldonado, 45, of 240 Harrison Road in Wilsons Mills, was charged with murder and attempted first degree murder. He was being held in the Johnston County jail without bond. He is due in court on July 22.

Authorities said Maldonado shot Elizabeth Holmes Reyes and Ben Croft at 80 Neuse Bend Road in Smithfield on Thursday afternoon. Reyes was killed, and Croft was being treated at Johnston Memorial Hospital for non life-threatening injuries.

Family members said Reyes and Maldonado had been married for about two years.

When deputies arrived at the home, Maldonado was on the porch holding an infant and a weapon. He surrendered to police. The infant, who family members said is the couple's son, was not injured.

In May, Maldonado was charged with communicating threats to Reyes. According to arrest warrants, Maldonado told Reyes he would kill her.



In March, Maldonado was charged with assault on a female, according to arrest warrants. The charge was filed after police said he hit his wife in the face with his fist. Reyes voluntarily dismissed the charges in April, according to court records.

Janice Allen, a victim advocate in Johnston County, said she helped Reyes file a domestic violence protective order against her husband back in March.

At that time, Reyes claimed her husband assaulted her with a closed fist and threatened to "get her with jumper cables and cut off the power to the house."

Two court hearings were scheduled, but both Reyes and Maldonado did not attend the meetings, so a judge dismissed the order.

Allen said there may have been some confusion about where Reyes was staying when the courts were trying to serve her notice about the hearings.

“This is only a piece of paper,” Allen said of the order. “And if he really wants to hurt you, this is not going to stop it.”

In 2008, Maldonado was charged with assault with a deadly weapon after police said he held a knife to Reyes' throat and told her that was going to kill her. Reyes later voluntarily dismissed the charge.

Another woman took out a protective order against Maldonado in 2005, claiming he beat her and tried to choke her, according to court documents. She also claimed he held a knife to her throat.

Maldonado filed a protective order against that woman in 2007, claiming she punched him in the face and threatened him with a gun.

Reporter: Beau Minnick
Web Editor: Kathy Hanrahan