A bar fight, receipts and the transfer of an SUV days after a fatal shooting are at the center of a homicide case that Philadelphia police say they solved nearly four years later, the NBC10 Investigators have learned. Lawrence Cary, 44, faces charges including murder in the death of Armand Hayes, 30. Investigators allege Cary transferred ownership of an SUV linked to the case a week after the homicide. On Aug. 16, 2022, around 1 a.m., officers in the 19th District heard gunshots coming from the area of 60th and Vine streets in West Philadelphia, court documents said. Officers located Hayes in the road suffering from multiple gunshot wounds. Hayes died from his injuries several hours later, police said. A witness told police they saw a man in an SUV fire a gun from the driver’s seat out the passenger-side window toward Hayes. Police later learned Hayes and another man, identified as Cary, had been fighting inside a nearby bar before the shooting, documents said. According to a bar employee, the person fighting with Hayes bit him during the altercation. Police later obtained surveillance video that showed the same SUV parking outside the bar, documents said. A man then exited the SUV and entered the bar alone. Additional surveillance video showed Hayes and the man police identified as Cary fighting around 11:45 p.m. About 15 minutes later, video showed both men leaving the bar and driving off in their respective vehicles, documents said. Bar receipts later helped police identify Cary as the man seen fighting with Hayes in the video, according to court records. A license plate reader also captured Cary’s SUV, which investigators said was similar to the vehicle seen in other surveillance footage, in the area around the time of the homicide. Earlier this month, detectives reviewed call records for Cary, which showed his phone was disconnected in October 2022, documents said. Investigators said all outgoing calls from Cary’s phone stopped about 20 minutes after the homicide. On Aug. 13, 2026, police reviewed additional surveillance video that they said showed Cary “searching for someone” after returning to the lounge. Prosecutors obtained an arrest warrant for Cary on Aug. 14, court records show. Police arrested Cary on Wednesday, Aug. 26. During his initial court appearance, a judge denied Cary bail. Cary is scheduled to return to court Sept. 14. The Defender Association of Philadelphia, which was representing Cary, does not comment on pending cases. Hayes’ death had been listed among Philadelphia police’s unsolved homicides until Cary’s arrest. NBC10 investigative reporter David Charns can be reached at [email protected]. ...read more read less