Gunman Nigel Edge, a former Marine and Purple Heart honoree, opened fire at a Southport restaurant, resulting in three fatalities and eight injuries.

The man who allegedly conducted a deadly mass shooting in Southport, N.C., was a highly decorated Marine and veteran of the Iraq War. Nigel Edge, who was born Sean DeBevoise before changing his name in 2023,

Nigel Edge, 40, a Purple Heart recipient whose last assignment was with a Wounded Warrior battalion, made his first court appearance by video link after Saturday’s shooting.

Edge was born Sean William Debevoise. He later legally changed his name in 2023. In his name change petition to the court, he wrote: "There have been a lot of events in my life that I don't understand. Therefore, I do not trust my family, and I would feel more comfortable starting my life in a new path with a new name."

The idyllic community of Southport, North Carolina, was left reeling after a shooter opened fire on patrons of the American Fish Company bar in025.

Nigel Edge, who was then known as Sgt. Sean Debevoise, first met Pickler at a charity event in North Carolina.

Nigel Edge, a former Marine with PTSD, allegedly opened fire from a boat at a Southport bar on September 27, 2025, killing three and injuring five. Edge, who legally changed his name, previously sued singer Kellie Pickler,

In his years since leaving his heavily decorated career with the Marines, Edge appears to have become a paranoid and delusional conspiracy theorist, according to online records.