‘Life is quiet without her;’ Man sentenced to life in prison after murder of Surf City woman

PENDER COUNTY, N.C. (WWAY-TV) — A Holly Springs man was sentenced to life in prison without the possibility of parole Friday after pleading guilty to the first-degree murder of a Surf City woman in 2022.

Charles Haywood, 26, appeared in Pender County Superior Court and accepted a plea deal in the stabbing death of 42-year-old Margaret “Nicky” Bracey.

Bracey was working at Exotic Hemp Dispensary in Surf City on Aug. 24, 2022, when Haywood entered the business carrying a kitchen knife, according to District Attorney Jason Smith and Assistant District Attorney Brad Matthews.

Prosecutors said Haywood intended to rob the dispensary. He allegedly brandished the knife and demanded that Bracey open the cash register before stabbing her multiple times.

“It was a heinous, heinous crime,” Smith said.

Smith said Bracey was stabbed 16 times in the neck, in addition to suffering multiple stab wounds to her torso, head and back.

“She did not know him, she was just working and trying to make a living,” Smith said.

According to prosecutors, Haywood stole about $750 from the business. The entire incident was captured on surveillance video, Smith said.

Haywood returned home after the killing. The following day, his mother took him to the Surf City Police Department, where he turned himself in.

Haywood was originally charged with first-degree murder and robbery with a dangerous weapon.

Smith said his office pursued the death penalty because of the brutality of the crime. Haywood instead pleaded guilty to first-degree murder and received a sentence of life in prison without parole.

“It is very rare in our jurisdiction and in other jurisdictions that someone comes in and pleads to first-degree murder and says, ‘I did it,’ and takes a life-without-parole sentence,” Smith said. “We are thankful we did not have to put this family through a trial.”

During Friday’s hearing, two of Bracey’s aunts and her sister spoke about the impact of her death on their family.

Smith said Bracey’s family is satisfied with the sentence, though they continue to grieve her loss.

“They still lost a loved one, and the only thing she did wrong that day was go to work,” Smith said.