RALEIGH, N.C. (WGHP) — As police in Raleigh piece together what led up to the deadly shooting that took place outside of a grocery store on Western Boulevard, a Triad family is coming to grips with the loss of a vibrant 22-year-old N.C. State grad.
"I could always call Cody," said his sister, Shawna McKibben. "I could always pick up the phone and call him. He would understand and not judge me or make me feel bad."
Friday evening, officers found Thomasville native Cody McLaggan dead from a gunshot wound near the college campus. His family said he had texted some friends that he was on the way to meet up with them moments before he was shot.
Police say a man driving a white car fled the scene. Officers later arrested James Christopher Anderson, 19, of Raleigh, on a murder charge.
"I was very shocked to the point of just being numb," McKibben said.
His older sister describes him as the perfect brother.
"More than anything I just wanted people to understand that my brother was extremely loving," she said. "He was extremely sweet. A down-to-earth human who loved everybody, who would sacrifice himself for anybody."
He was an "A" student with several job offers out of college. He had just graduated with a B.S. in agricultural business. He had also just accepted a job in Virginia where he was supposed to move at the end of the month.
"He had a really great fascination with working with plants and breeding plants," McKibben said.
He wasn't only a lover of plants. He loved people too.
"He was amazing," said family friend Lilly Covington. "Very bubbly. He always did everything he could to put a smile on your face or make you laugh."
While his death comes weeks before his unborn nephew's arrival, his sister says there's one message she plans to convey to her son about his uncle.
"He was already concerned about how often he would get to see you and hold you, and he just really loved you," McKibben said.
There is a GoFundMe to help with funeral expenses. Their goal is to reach $10,000 to give back to the family.
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