Affidavit Details Path To Arrest For 2019 Murder

Over a year’s worth of community interviews, surveillance video reviews, and ​“No Bueno” Facebook-page sleuthing led police to arrest a 37-year-old man for allegedly murdering Curtis McCray, Jr. in Newhallville in October 2019.

That suspect — who called 911 to report the shooting the night of the homicide — has consistently denied that he killed anyone, and has argued instead that he was the bullets’ likely target.

The story of that police work and of arrested suspect Michael Holmes’s denial of any wrongdoing emerge across a 10-page arrest warrant affidavit that was written and signed by Det. Steven Cunningham on Jan. 26.

The Independent obtained a copy of the affidavit after New Haven Police Department (NHPD) top brass and the mayor held a press conference on Feb. 3 during which they announced that police had obtained an arrest warrant for Holmes​’s alleged murder of McCray. (Click on the video below to watch that police press conference.)

The affidavit details the police-work persistence by Cunningham and fellow NHPD Det. Daniel Conklin in tracking down and interviewing witnesses, Newhallville community members, and anyone else who may know something about who killed McCray — a 35-year-old Hamden man — in the early morning of Oct. 26, 2019 on Shelton Avenue.

It also reveals just how much this arrest relies on the testimony of unidentified ​“cooperating witnesses” who named Holmes as the murderer. Police have not found the gun involved in the crime, have not found any video footage clearly showing Holmes as the shooter, and have not found any ballistic evidence directly connecting Holmes with the homicide.

The arrested suspect — who later admitted to a separate nonfatal shooting that took place two weeks after McCray was killed in the same area of Newhallville — has consistently denied that he murdered McCray.

Holmes told the detectives that he thinks he was the intended target for the bullets that ended McCray’s life that night. He suggested that the shooting may have stemmed from an argument he had earlier that evening with several men at a party at a nearby tattoo parlor. 

Holmes has also admitted to police that he was the one who called 911 right after McCray was shot near a porch Holmes often hangs out at on Shelton Avenue.

“Holmes stated numerous times throughout the interview he did not kill anyone,” Cunningham wrote towards the end of the affidavit when recounting a December 2020 interview with Holmes while the latter was already locked up on separate charges at the Bridgeport Correctional Center.

“Holmes again said he called 911 and if he did kill someone, he would have left the area.”

Police arrested Holmes for allegedly murdering McCray on Feb. 10 of this year. Holmes has been charged with one count of felony murder and one count of felony criminal possession of a firearm, and is currently being held on a $1.5 million bond in this case. His next court hearing is scheduled for Tuesday. 

According to the state criminal court online database, Holmes has not yet entered a plea in the case.

10/26/2019, 2:09 A.M.: 6 Shots Fired

The affidavit begins with Cunningham writing that, on Oct. 26, 2019 at around 2:09 a.m., ShotSpotter detected six gunshots in the area of 429 Shelton Ave. 

A few minutes later, the police received two 911 emergency calls.

One came from a male caller who identified himself Michael Holmes. That man said he was driving and that there was a person lying in front of Chapman’s Liquor Store on Shelton Avenue. ​“They were shooting so I left,” that man told the dispatcher before hanging up.

A second 911 call came from a woman who reported hearing — but not seeing — four gunshots fired in the area in front of the liquor store.

Upon arriving at the scene, uniformed police officers canvassed the area around Chapman’s Liquor Store. They didn’t find the victim or any ballistic evidence. 

Police ultimately found McCray’s body across the street from the liquor store, in front of 423 – 425 Shelton Ave. He was lying on the ground and unresponsive. An ambulance took him to Yale New Haven Hospital on York Street, where he was pronounced deceased at 2:40 a.m.

An autopsy performed by the state’s chief medical examiner subsequently found that McCray had been shot twice: once in the left arm and chest, once above his clavicle. The chief medical examiner ruled the cause of death to be ​“gunshot wound of trunk with injury of aorta and lung,” and the manner of death ​“homicide.”

City detectives found four bullets on the scene: one located in the front of 429 Shelton Ave, a second in the street, a third inside of a Jeep Grand Cherokee that was struck by gunfire, and a fourth in front of 423 Shelton Ave. 

An analysis of the bullets found on scene and recovered from McCray’s body found that they were all “.38 caliber class, fired lead bullets,” but ​“they could not be identified or eliminated as having been fired from the same firearm.”

Witnesses Saw Shooting; Couldn't ID Shooter

Cunningham wrote that he spoke with a resident of the area who heard the gunshots and who told a family member to call 911. That resident said that on the night of the shooting they were inside of the kitchen of their home and heard roughly four or five gunshots.

They looked out their window and saw two individuals walking across the street and enter a black four-door vehicle with tinted windows. One entered the front passenger seat, the other entered the driver’s seat. The concerned citizen only saw their legs, and wasn’t able to provide any other description of the individuals.

They ​“described when the individuals walked to the vehicle they were not in a rush. The vehicle drove down Shelton Avenue towards Bassett Street. The police arrived immediately after.”

The concerned citizen saw ​“something on the ground in front of a truck, he initially thought it was a trash bag but then realized it was a person when police [shined] their flashlight on him.”

That concerned citizen said they did not initially talk with the police about what they saw ​“because of the neighborhood.”

Cunningham then obtained video surveillance footage from a nearby deli at the corner of Goodrich and Butler Streets. 

That video showed that, just prior to the homicide, an individual in a hooded sweatshirt walked west in the direction of Shelton Avenue and out of camera view. The individual was wearing clothing consistent with what McCray was wearing when found shot on the scene.

The next day, Cunningham spoke with another Newhallville resident who also offered helpful information.

"No Bueno" Facebook Pic

In the course of the investigation, Cunningham concluded McCray had been arguing with his girlfriend and then left the area.

When McCray returned, he was using drugs. ​“A group of people thought McCray was trying to rob them. McCray was shot and killed by a male named ​‘Mike’, who then called 911.“

On Nov. 11, 2019, Det. Conklin investigated a nonfatal shooting in the area of Newhall Street and Read Street. 

He found that Holmes was the primary suspect in this separate nonfatal shooting. The man who had been shot on Nov. 11 said that the suspect’s hair ​“used to be gold.”

Nine days later, Holmes and another man were arrested on firearm charges at Ashe’s Barber Shop on Shelton Avenue. They were both in possession of .380 caliber handguns.

Cunningham and Conklin interviewed Holmes at police headquarters. 

During that interview, Holmes ​“admitted to the shooting that occurred at Newhall Street and Read Street.” 

He also said during that interview that he owns a white Cadillac Deville, and that he has the Facebook name, ​“No Bueno.”

Conklin showed Holmes a picture from a video posted to his Facebook page showing Holmes holding a silver revolver. 

Holmes said he bought the gun in Alabama ​“but stated he no longer had it.” He said the gun had been stolen from his car after it was towed earlier in the year.

Holmes Denies Killing McCray

During that same interview, Holmes said that he ​“frequents the area of Shelton Avenue,” mainly Ashe’s barbershop, Chapman’s Liquor Store, and the third floor of 429 Shelton Ave.

On the night of McCray’s murder, Holmes said, he was at the barbershop on Shelton until around 8 p.m. with his friend. 

They then went to Chapman’s Liquor Store until it closed, and then went to 429 Shelton Ave. to hang out on the front porch.

Holmes said he and his friend then went to a party at a tattoo shop near Chazmo’s bar on Dixwell Avenue in Hamden at approximately 10 p.m.

He said he got into an argument at that party with two or three men over ​“previous issues” between Read Street and Shelton Avenue. One of the men he argued with was the same man he admitted to shooting on Nov. 11. The other man had the nickname ​“Ant.”

While outside Chazmo’s, the suspect said, he heard roughly three or four gunshots, but didn’t know they were coming from Shelton Avenue.

He said he left the party at around 2 a.m., drove to two gas stations in Hamden, and then to two different McDonald’s in New Haven on Whalley Avenue. 

By the time he returned to the area of Shelton Avenue and Morris Street, he said, the area had been blocked off by police.

The man ​“insisted he was not on Shelton Avenue when McCray was shot, and he was not involved in the murder.” 

He said that he may have been the intended target of the shooting, because ​“people initially thought he was killed and [he] received numerous Facebook messages asking if he was ​‘OK.’ ”

Cunningham showed the suspect a picture of McCray. Holmes said he didn’t recognize him. He also said that people had told him he knew McCray when he was younger. He said he had not heard why McCray was killed.

On Nov. 18, 2020, city police obtained a search and seizure warrant for T‑Mobile telephone records that showed that one of the phone numbers that called 911 the night of McCray’s murder belonged to a West Haven woman who subsequently identified herself as the suspect’s girlfriend.

Holmes Admits To Calling 911 After Murder

On Feb. 18, 2020, Cunningham interviewed a cooperating witness at police headquarters. 

That witness said they were not present at the scene at the time of McCray’s homicide. But, they said, they were on Shelton Avenue near Chapman’s Liquor Store earlier in the evening on the same day as the murder.

They said they were drinking with a group of people and saw a man named ​“Mike.”

They said this man had a ​“big black revolver” on him, and was showing the gun to a number of people in the area. 

The witness picked out ​“Mike” from an array of eight photographs and said that he was the one ​“that showed the revolver on the night someone was killed on Shelton Ave.”

On Feb. 21, 2020 at around 12:50 p.m., Cunningham and Sgt. Bert Ettienne met Holmes in the Intelligence Office at the Whalley Avenue jail. 

During that interview, Holmes denied recognizing the phone number that called 911 the night of the murder and that police believe belonged to his girlfriend.

The suspect ​“then admitted, contrary to his first interview, that he did call 911 on the night of the homicide to report the shooting and admitted that he was on Shelton Avenue when the homicide occurred.”

Cunningham asked if Holmes had a gun on him that night. 

He said he didn’t, and then he said, ​“I always have a gun.”

Holmes continued, ​“If I had my gun with me when they started shooting, there would have been problems. I would have shot back.”

Holmes then admitted that he had a 9 mm handgun with him earlier in the day, but said he had stashed that gun behind the house at 429 Shelton Ave. before going to Chazmo’s with his friend ​“Big.”

Holmes again stated that he had been involved in an argument at Chazmo’s that night with three people, one of whom was the man he later shot on Nov. 11. 

He also repeated that, after he left Chazmo’s, he went to McDonald’s with his friend ​“Big” and then got a ride back to 429 Shelton Ave.

Then Holmes changed his story from the last time police had interviewed him about the murder.

This time, he said he was sitting on the porch looking at his phone when a white vehicle with tinted windows pulled into the driveway. He said that one of the people in the car was one of the people he had been arguing with earlier at the tattoo parlor party.

After Holmes told the man in the car to ​“get the fuck out of here,” the vehicle left and went north on Shelton towards Hamden. 

Holmes then said ​“shots rang out” from either the driveway or bushes nearby, and he saw McCray had ​“got hit.” 

Holmes said he ran away and checked himself to see if he was ​“OK.” He couldn’t provide a description of the alleged shooter.

Holmes repeated that he thought the shooting was ​“meant for him because he spends every day on the porch and in the driveway of 429 Shelton Avenue.” 

He ​“repeatedly denied he killed McCray and said if he did it, he would have never called 911.”

"Cooperating Witness" IDs Holmes

On Oct. 22, 2020, Cunningham and Det. Paul D’Andrea interviewed another cooperating witness at police headquarters.

That witness said they were in their home near where the shooting occurred the night of the homicide. 

At the time of the murder, they said, they were with a male friend ​“who would later be the victim of a homicide in 2020.”

They said they saw Holmes from their bedroom window. They initially referred to him by his nickname ​“No Bueno” as well as by his first name.

They said they saw McCray walk past their house on the sidewalk headed south from Hamden. 

They said they heard approximately five to seven gunshots, and that most of the shots came from the driveway where they had seen Holmes standing.

They then saw McCray stumble against the tree in the front yard. They saw another gunshot hit the tree, another hit McCray, and another hit a Jeep parked by the sidewalk across Shelton Avenue.

They said they saw a white car pull into the driveway of their home. 

The witness went to the window of the vehicle and told the occupants there was a shooting and that the police were on their way. The white car then left the area and headed back towards Hamden. 

They then heard someone in front of the house call 911 and report the shooting. They said the voice of the 911 caller sounded like Holmes. 

The witness said they were ​“100 percent accurate [Holmes] was the one shooting.”

They then saw Holmes go into the backyard of 427 Shelton Ave. and place the gun inside of a shed located to the rear of the home. Police never found the gun.

The witness didn’t see Holmes actually fire the gun, but they did see Holmes’s face when they ran around the side of their home after the shooting. They said Holmes fled the area in a Mercedes Benz south on Shelton Avenue towards Read Street. Police later learned that the father of the friend Holmes said he was with that night owns a Mercedes Benz.

The witness described the gun as a silver revolver and said they believed it was the same gun Holmes was holding in a picture on his ​“No Bueno” Facebook page.

The witness said they did not see the Holmes’s face during the shooting, but they did see his hair. They said they had met Holmes over a year ago, knew him to carry a revolver in the past, and noted that he had a piercing over his eye.

Shown a photo array of eight different photographs of eight different people, the witness picked out the suspect, saying ​“shooter, he’s the shooter.”

On Nov. 20, 2020, ​“intelligence officers” from the state prison in Bridgeport located a letter addressed to Holmes by the second witness. 

In that letter, dated April 9, the witness wrote, ​“I do get nightmare from wrong place wrong time incident & I forgive you for that I understand you was nervous & trying to protect yourself no love lost my boi.”

Interviewed on Dec. 22, 2020 about that letter and other recent phone calls he had made from prison that potentially referred to the homicide, Holmes again denied that he had killed anyone. 

He said he called 911 the night of McCray’s murder. If he did kill someone, Holmes said, he would have left the area.

Cunningham wrote that he interviewed Holmes on three separate occasions. All three times, he did not have a gold, orange or blond patch of hair.

However, in a July 2019 photo posted to his ​“No Bueno” Facebook page, Holmes does have a ​“gold or blonde colored pony tail” sticking out of the back of a baseball hat.

“Throughout the course of this investigation, Affiant Cunningham has received information through members of the New Haven Police Department from community members claiming that various individuals other than Michael Holmes were responsible for the death of Curtis McCray,” Cunningham wrote. ​“This affiant investigated each of these leads and has not developed any evidence that any of these rumored individuals were involved or in any way responsible.”

Holmes was not incarcerated at the time of the shooting, he wrote, and he is currently incarcerated at Cheshire Correctional Institution for Assault in the First Degree. 

“Based on the above statements,” Cunningham concluded, ​“this Affiant has probable cause to believe that Michael Holmes … committed the crime of Murder C.G.S. 53a-54 and Criminal Possession of a Firearm C.G.S. 53a-217.”