Asheville audio engineer, 'loving' man killed in ambush, armed robbery fiancé says
ASHEVILLE — Chase Christian VanLeeuwen, a certified audio engineer and sound mixer, was taking a break from a late-night session at a recording studio in West Asheville to smoke a cigarette outside and text his fiancé just before 11 p.m. Dec. 22.
About 25 minutes later, Asheville Police Department officers arrived at the scene responding to an 11:20 p.m. 911 call reporting that a dozen people were hiding from armed robbers and suspected shooters. When officers entered the building, they found one "subject down" from a gunshot wound to the head, later identified as VanLeeuwen, according to officer response notes obtained by the Citizen Times.
His fiancé, Jasmine Greenwood, told the Citizen Times March 11 that VanLeeuwen had some fear about working in the studio at 353 New Leicester Highway "just due to some of the clientele that was coming through there" and the lack of visibility, with no marked location on Google Maps and no clear view of it from the main road.
VanLeeuwen, who worked with local artists creating beats and mixing songs, had promised Greenwood he wouldn't go back, she said. But he'd picked up a freelance gig that night to make some extra money before Christmas.
Deadly recording studio armed robbery: Double homicide update: recording studio armed robbery, dozen people hid, murder charge
Greenwood said she was texting with him during the session, offering to pick him up since "he was nervous because the owners weren't there, and they always were. He was generally not feeling the session."
Greenwood said VanLeeuwen had just an hour left in the recording session. The last text Greenwood sent was about how her 6-year-old son was saying how much he loves VanLeeuwen and how excited they were to see him.
"'I love you all so much' was the last text I got from him, and then I started freaking out because I hadn't heard from him," Greenwood said, which was just before 11 p.m. according to time stamps on their text conversation.
Greenwood said her fiancé was "ambushed outside," and pushed into the building before he was shot. She said she thinks that's why the two people facing armed robbery and murder charges, Tristin Marquese Maewether and Rontae La-Warren Harper, are also charged with first-degree kidnapping in connection to VanLeeuwen's death.
First man arrested: Asheville man charged with murder in December gunfight on New Leicester Hwy
Second man arrested: 19-year-old charged with murder in December double homicide at recording studio
"I just think it's completely unfair that he's been ripped from so many people's lives that really loved him and needed him," Greenwood said. "He was so undeserving of the crime, and that's not been represented. It's like 'oh this is just another rap studio,' but Chase was there professionally to make a couple extra bucks for Christmas."
Greenwood described her fiancé as a "beautiful man," "a jolly guy," and an artist, who professionally recorded tracks and mixed them for radio edits. She said VanLeeuwen studied production in Atlanta at age 18 and had flown across the country from Florida to Seattle in pursuit of his music career.
The two met in Asheville in 2021 and have lived together since then. She said VanLeeuwen was "like a stepfather" to her young son, going to school events and teaching him how to ride a bike.
"He was so loving," Greenwood said. "He'd give somebody the shirt off his back, literally."
Another gunshot wound victim, later identified as Marckia Ornette Jones, 20, of Asheville, was dropped at Mission Hospital's emergency room front door the same night VanLeeuwen was shot and killed, according to her death investigation report.
Despite emergency surgery and resuscitative measures, Jones died in the operating room.
“During the course of the robbery, (Jones) shot another individual and was then shot by another party in the business,” according to to the Buncombe County Medical Examiner in Jones' autopsy. “She was taken by private vehicle to a local hospital but succumbed to her injuries.”
Following the armed robbery and gun fight turned double homicide, Maewether, of Asheville, was arrested Feb. 16 and charged with first-degree murder, first-degree kidnapping and robbery with a dangerous weapon, according to a previous news release APD.
Harper, 19, of Asheville, was also arrested March 6 and charged with first-degree murder, first-degree kidnapping and attempted robbery with a dangerous weapon for his role in the shooting death of Vanleeuwen, another police news release said.
Harper is being held at the Buncombe County Detention Center under no bond. Maewether is serving a 90-day sentence in prison for a parole violation and will return to the Buncombe County Detention Facility when that's completed, his attorney previously told the Citizen Times.
"The investigation is active and ongoing," the March 7 release announcing Harper's arrest stated.
If anyone has any information about this homicide or any other illegal activity, information can be shared anonymously by texting TIP2APD to 847411 (Tip411). This service can be used to upload audio, video, and photos. APD can be contacted directly at 828-252-1110.
Ryley Ober is the Public Safety Reporter for Asheville Citizen Times, part of the USA Today Network. Email her at rober@gannett.com and follow her on Twitter @ryleyober
This article originally appeared on Asheville Citizen Times: Asheville audio engineer man killed in studio robbery, fiancé says
