The 43-year-old suspect is being held without bail in the Clallam County Jail pending extradition.
PORT ANGELES, Wash. — Police in Port Angeles arrested a man wanted in a double homicide that occurred in North Carolina in 2008.
The suspect, 43-year-old Johnny S. Talbert was taken into custody in Washington on May 12 after the Concord Police Department obtained a extraditable warrant for his arrest. He is being held without bail in the Clallam County Jail pending extradition, law enforcement officials said.
Talbert is charged with two counts of first-degree murder and one count of robbery with a firearm or other dangerous weapon in connection with the June 13, 2008, shooting at the Sun Drop Bottling Company. The homicide, commonly referred to as the Sun Drop Murders, occurred at the facility in Concord, North Carolina.
At approximately 10 a.m. that morning, officers responded to a reported shooting inside the facility and found two victims — 59-year-old Donna Barnhardt, the company’s longtime office manager, and 44-year-old Darrell Noles, who was at the location to apply for a job. Both were pronounced dead at the scene.
At the time of the homicides, witnesses reported seeing a man fleeing on foot toward Cabarrus Avenue. Detectives believe the suspect shot and killed both victims and stole money from the front office before fleeing.
Despite investigating hundreds of community tips in the years that followed, the case went unsolved for almost two decades.
A break came in late 2025 when detectives reexamined evidence and pursued previously undeveloped leads, uncovering critical information that pointed to Talbert. On Dec. 19, 2025, Concord investigators contacted the Port Angeles Police Department regarding Talbert. Detectives traveled to Port Angeles on May 18, 2026, for further investigation, leading to his arrest three days later.
Talbert is set to appear on June 12 in Clallam County Superior Court.
The families of Barnhardt and Noles have been notified of Talbert’s arrest. Concord police ask that the media and public respect the families’ privacy.
The investigation remains active. Anyone with additional information is asked to call 704-920-5000 or 704-93-CRIME to remain anonymous.
