High Point suspect dies in apartment fire during warrant service

A warrant service on Sherrill Avenue ended in flames, an evacuation and the death of the High Point man authorities were trying to arrest on child sex-crime charges. Timothy E. Parker, 58, was found dead inside his apartment after U.S. Marshals and High Point police went to the 3000 block of Sherrill Avenue on June 16.

Authorities said Parker was wanted on two counts of statutory sex offense with a child younger than 15 and one count of indecent liberties with a child. The High Point Police Department said the charges came from a sexual assault case reported in May and investigated by its Special Victims Unit, part of a broader child-protection push that also included the Triad ICAC Task Force.

Police said Parker came to the door, saw law enforcement in the parking lot and ignored commands to come outside. Soon after, marshals saw flames and smoke inside the unit and called firefighters. The High Point Fire Department responded, and nearby apartments were evacuated, though damage was contained to Parker’s unit.

No law enforcement officers or other community members were hurt. Investigators said no one else was inside the apartment. The High Point Police Department said the fire appears intentional and Parker’s death is being investigated as a suicide. The High Point Fire Marshal’s Office continued investigating the blaze.

The operation involved the U.S. Marshals Service Carolinas Regional Fugitive Task Force, a multi-agency team that brings together federal, state and local agencies to locate and apprehend dangerous fugitives. The task force says it has partnerships with more than 70 agencies, 11 operational offices and has apprehended more than 8,900 fugitives since it began.

The case now leaves unanswered questions for investigators and for the people tied to the underlying allegations. Parker’s death means the sex-offense case will not move forward against him in court, even as the allegations remain serious under North Carolina law. Court records also show Parker had been arrested May 9 after running from a police officer investigating a fight, adding another piece to the record authorities were working from before the warrant service.

High Point police were already active on child-exploitation cases around the same time. A May 21 police release showed the Special Victims Unit and the Triad ICAC Task Force pursuing those cases in the city, including one arrest tied to 58 counts of second-degree sexual exploitation of a minor. In Guilford County, the June 16 fire turned a warrant service into a death investigation and left the underlying case without a defendant to face the charges.