Scott Leamon

Published: May 5, 2008

Updated 5:30 p.m.

Court records claim a Salem police detective found more than 100 rounds of ammunition in a SUV belonging to Brian Sheppard.

Sheppard is charged with gunning down James “Rich” Fleshman, 48, of Roanoke, in a Salem Food Lion parking lot on April 29th.

Search warrants on file in Montgomery County circuit court and Salem city circuit court claim Sheppard told a Montgomery County sheriff’s deputy he had “shot a man in Salem 15 times.”

The deputy stopped Sheppard in his Jeep Grand Cherokee on Route 11 less than half an hour after the shooting, according to police.

An inventory of items Salem police seized in a search of the SUV is now on file in Salem circuit court.

The inventory claims police found two boxes of ammunition for a .40 caliber weapon, totaling 99 rounds.

It also states police uncovered 13 “hollow point” loose rounds.

Three were found in the driver’s seat, according to the inventory.  Ten were found on the floor board of the driver’s side.

Police also confiscated a handgun holster, an empty box of ammunition, and a light tan jacket with “red stains on [the] lower left pocket area.”

The inventory shows police took a box for a blue Beretta handgun which contained a magazine loader, instruction manual, cleaning kit, and handwritten receipt with Sheppard’s name on it.

Police took a business card of Radford police captain James Lawson with Christiansburg police chief Mark Sisson’s name written on the back, according to the inventory.

Sheppard was on probation after a fight with Fleshman last summer, said Radford commonwealth’s attorney Chris Rehak.

Lawson has not returned a phone call seeking comment on his contacts, if any, with Sheppard.

Several of Sheppard’s neighbors told 10 On Your Side Christiansburg police have been to his home “several” times over the past year.

There was also a yellow post-it note the Virginia Child Protective Services hotline phone number found under the driver’s seat, according to the inventory.

Through a spokeswoman, Salem police declined comment on the search warrant and its inventory.

Sheppard is due in court June 27th.

Fleshman was laid to rest Sunday.

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Court documents 10 On Your Side uncovered this morning reveal new details about what police say they found inside a Salem murder suspect’s SUV.

Officers arrested Brian Sheppard last Tuesday, and charged Sheppard with murder in the shooting death of James Fleshman.  The shooting happened in the parking lot of a Food Lion on Wildwood Road in Salem.

According to the documents, officers found:

• One black nylon handgun holster.
• One blue, berretta handgun box.  It contained a magazine loader, an instruction manual, a cleaning kit, and a handwritten receipt for $529.98 in the name of Brian Sheppard.
• Officers also say they found more than 100 rounds of .40 caliber ammunition.  13 of those rounds were hollow-point rounds.

Investigators say Fleshman was shot multiple times.  According to previous court documents WSLS uncovered last week, investigators say Sheppard told them he shot a man in Salem 15 times.