The 29-year-old man killed Tuesday night in the front yard of his home was shot multiple times, one of them striking him in the chest, Sampson’s medical examiner noted today.

Although an autopsy has not been completed on James Ray Carr, Dr. Carl Barr said Thursday afternoon that the victim had multiple gunshot wounds in his extremities.

“He’d been shot once in the chest,” Dr. Barr said, noting that he would likely complete the autopsy sometime Friday or possibly over the weekend.

“There’s much to be done,” the medical examiner said, ticking off a list of items he has to do in order to complete his findings, including gathering evidence and meeting with law enforcement officials.

“A lot of things have to be coordinated. My average time on an uncomplicated autopsy is about four or five hours. On these, which involve someone being shot, it can take an unbelievable amount of time. Locating the bullets takes time, and that’s my main objective in these cases is making sure I recover those bullets.”

Carr was shot early Tuesday night as he stood in the front yard of his 17 Sylvia Lane residence. According to Sampson County sheriff’s investigators someone pulled up to the residence shortly after 7 p.m., got out of the car and opened fire on the victim..

Because of the weather conditions — dark and extremely foggy — witnesses were unable to give good descriptions of the suspects. Right now, all officers have to go on is that the assailant is believed to be a large-framed black man driving a small passenger vehicle.

“We don’t have a motive and we don’t know what kind of weapon was used,” Sampson County Sheriff’s Capt. Eric Pope stressed Wednesday when he released Carr’s name.

Officers and EMS workers were called to the scene just after 7:30 p.m. Tuesday. When they arrived, they found a family member performing CPR on Carr in the front yard of his residence. Efforts to revive him were unsuccessful and he was pronounced dead at the scene.

Investigators from both the Sheriff’s Office and the State Bureau of Investigation are currently processing evidence and interviewing witnesses in an attempt to identify a possible suspect.

Pope said witnesses had not been able to give many details because of the weather conditions.

Dr. Barr, too, said he had collected evidence, a portion of what has to be done before an autopsy is completed.

“I expect I should have everything completed sometime Friday. It could take a little longer, but I won’t know that for sure until I get a little further into it,” Dr. Barr noted.

Anyone with information on this case is asked to call the Sheriff’s Office at 910-592-4141.