A U.S. Postal Service worker in North Carolina was kidnapped and fatally shot on her delivery route in June, just six months after her husband died in a car crash, authorities said.
Brandi Reynolds, 35, was killed on June 26 in Hays, North Carolina, while on duty. William Craig Durham, 56, who allegedly lived in the same community, has been arrested and charged with first-degree murder and kidnapping. He has pleaded not guilty and was denied bond.
According to a warrant, Reynolds was restrained before she was killed. Deputies found her deceased when they arrived at the scene. Durham was taken into custody shortly after.
Witnesses reported seeing a man in a gray Nissan Altima threatening a woman in a U.S. Postal Service vehicle and subsequently hearing gunshots, according to The Wilkes Record.
Records indicate that Reynolds and her late husband, Brent Reynolds, had previously pleaded guilty in 2022 to using their home as a base for dealing fentanyl and marijuana. Brandi Reynolds was sentenced to 30 months of supervised probation in May 2023. Her husband, who died in a pickup truck crash on December 24, 2025, was serving a 36-month supervised sentence at the time of his death.
Durham has an extensive criminal history dating back to 1988, including convictions for escaping jail, assault, intimidating a witness, possessing a firearm as a felon, second-degree kidnapping, robbery with a dangerous weapon, and first-degree kidnapping.
A family member of Reynolds told the court that Durham had allegedly threatened her and previously broken into her home, according to WGHP. However, the North Carolina State Bureau of Investigation has not confirmed if Reynolds and Durham had prior contact, citing the ongoing investigation.
Social media posts from Reynolds showed her devotion to her two young daughters. After her husband's death, she wrote on Facebook, "The reason I get up every morning. Love these babies. They are what makes life worth living." Her mother, Kathy Byrd, expressed her grief, stating, "I love you baby girl! This has forever put a hole in my heart."
Neighbors and friends remembered Reynolds as a kind and caring individual. "Brandi was my friend. Mail carrier doesn't do justice to her kindness and her caring of her people, she was always smiling, always happy," wrote local resident Lorraine Jennings. "101 degrees or freezing, Brandi was always smiling. Brandi, I'm so proud to have known you. One of the sweetest people I've ever known."
The U.S. Postal Service issued a statement expressing their condolences to Reynolds's family and coworkers, adding that no further information would be provided due to the ongoing investigation.