Barbara Exum, 56, of Bacon Avenue in Anniston, was found shot to death in a small side room of the store following a robbery estimated to have occurred approximately 11:35 p.m. Friday, authorities said.
Calhoun County Coroner Pat Brown pronounced Exum dead approximately 1:30 a.m. Saturday.
Police searched throughout the night Friday and through the day Saturday for the suspect, who had been seen fleeing the business at 1225 Snow Street.
Oxford Police Chief Bill Partridge said witnesses described the suspect as a dark-complected black man, 5 feet 6 inches tall, with short hair, a skinny build and a deep, raspy voice. He was wearing a black hoodie, with a green-and-brown camouflage bandanna around his face, and was armed with a black semi-automatic handgun at the time of the shooting, Partridge said.
Partridge said the suspect escaped with money and said authorities are concentrating the search for him locally. He declined to provide further details, citing concerns about jeopardizing the investigation. He said police arrived at the scene shortly after the shooting and found the victim lying face up, with a gunshot wound to the chest.
Authorities believe the victim resisted the suspect’s demand for money before the shooting occurred.
The Papa John’s shop, located at the eastern end of Snow Street near the intersection with Hamric Drive East, was closed Saturday. A large wreath and about half a dozen floral arrangements were clustered at its entrance. A businessman who works in a store next to the shop said about 100 people stopped by to get pizza throughout the day. They tugged on doors that would not open and found a note that said the store would be closed through Monday.
The note referred to Exum a “friend and team member,” and states that “thoughts and prayers are appreciated at this most difficult time.”
Inside the business foam cups sat on the counter, as if someone had just set them down. The neon lights that hang on the window were off.
Approximately 10 p.m. John and Holly Blanton, an area couple who never knew the victim, stopped by to pay their respects, touched by the circumstances of Exum’s death.
Oxford police and members of the Calhoun-Cleburne Drug & Violent Crime Task Force responded to the scene of the shooting.
Anyone with more information about the case can contact Oxford Police at 256-831-3121, or at www.oxfordpd.org. Authorities will accept anonymous information and do not need identifying information for any tipsters, Partridge said.
Star staff writer Laura Johnson: 256-235-3544.
