One dead, another in custody after shootout, chase

Published 12:01 am Thursday, February 18, 2021

SALISBURY — One man is dead and another is in custody after a vehicle chase Wednesday during which the suspects being chased allegedly shot at Rowan County sheriff’s deputies.

The passenger in a Chevrolet S10 truck was found in the woods off of Interstate 85 with multiple gunshot wounds. The driver of the truck will face charges for fleeing law enforcement officers, a news release said.

No officers were reported shot in the incident.

Names of the suspects were not immediately available late Wednesday or early Thursday.

The Rowan County Sheriff’s Office said the chase began at about 5 p.m. on Jacob Bost Road, where deputies were looking for a wanted man. A white Chevrolet S10 truck carrying two people left a residence on Jacob Bost Road, made a right turn onto Henderson Grove Church Road and another right onto South Main Street in Salisbury.

After the second right turn, deputies tried to stop the vehicle for a brake light and tag violations. That’s when the chase began.

During the chase, the suspects traveled on Mooresville, Klumac and Julian roads as well as Martin Luther King Jr. and Jake Alexander Boulevard. The vehicle received a flat tire on the front right side during the chase and stopped on the Interstate 85 south ramp off of Julian Road.

The vehicle’s passenger, who was later found dead in woods adjacent to I-85, fired a long gun at officers after exiting the vehicle on the interstate ramp, striking a Rowan County Sheriff’s Office vehicle three times, a news release said. Two deputies, who were not immediately named, fired back at the suspect.

The driver of the vehicle was arrested without incident.

The Salisbury Police Department, N.C. State Highway Patrol and Sheriff’s Office established a perimeter, with officers on the I-85 ramp and West Ritchie Road.

A news release said officers heard a single gunshot inside the wooded area as they were searching for the passenger. They found the dead man and a firearm.

A news release said Rowan County District Attorney Brandy Cook and the N.C. State Bureau of Investigation have been notified about the incident. The SBI will conduct an officer-involved shooting investigation.