SALISBURY — Police are investigating after a man was shot while attempting to stop two men from breaking into his car.

The incident began at approximately 12:30 a.m. on Friday at a home on Winston Lane, according to police reports. There, a man said that he went to look outside his window after he heard the dog barking at something, said Sergeant Justin Crotty, a spokesperson for the Salisbury Police Department.

The man saw two men, wearing masks and black clothing, attempting to break into a vehicle on the property and went to get his gun to stop them, said Crotty. The man then confronted the two men with his gun, at which point the two men allegedly turned around and immediately fired two shots at the man, hitting him once in the face. The man told officers that he fired one shot in return and was not sure whether he hit anyone, said Crotty. The two men then allegedly ran away on foot.

The man’s wife transported him to the Salisbury Fire Department station on South Main Street, where he received immediate treatment for the gunshot wound to his cheek. He was then transported to the hospital to receive further treatment for the injury, which Crotty confirmed was non-life-threatening.

Crotty said that the incident is the subject of an ongoing investigation, and that possible suspects have been identified with the assistance of the Rowan County Sheriff’s Office.