Greensboro man charged in 2023 River Oaks Drive homicide appears in court

A Greensboro homicide case that has hung over River Oaks Drive for more than two years moved back into court with a fresh arrest, but the hearing left key questions unanswered for Bakari Aman Lee’s family and for residents watching the case unfold in Guilford County.

Kendal Isaiah Roberts, 25, appeared in court on April 15, 2026, on a second-degree murder charge tied to the Nov. 26, 2023, shooting death of Lee, who was 24. Roberts was arrested the day before, on April 14, without incident by members of the Greensboro Police Department’s Violent Criminal Apprehension Team, with help from the North Carolina State Bureau of Investigation. He is being held in the Guilford County Jail without bond.

The case centers on a fatal shooting on River Oaks Drive in Greensboro. Investigators said Lee was shot eight to nine times. An autopsy showed that some of the shots were fired while Lee was falling, a detail that underscores the violence of the encounter and the seriousness of the charge now facing Roberts.

During Roberts’ first court appearance, a Greensboro Police Department homicide detective said new interviews, including Roberts’ cooperation, led investigators to the arrest. Police said their interview work led them to believe a friend drove Roberts to his apartment and thought they were being followed. According to investigators, Roberts believed the person following him was Lee.

Police allege Roberts went back and forth from his apartment to the parking lot to confront Lee multiple times and secure his own weapon. Investigators also said Lee was armed at the time of the shooting. Police said Roberts did not call 911 or go inside his apartment before the fatal gunfire. Authorities have not publicly released further detail about the alleged motive beyond the ongoing investigation.

Lee’s next of kin have been notified, police said. The arrest brought the case one step further after years without a public resolution, but it did not explain why the confrontation escalated into deadly gunfire on a Greensboro street. The investigation remains ongoing as Roberts stays in custody without bond and the case continues through Guilford County court.