GASTONIA, N.C. — A homeowner shot a man who was attempting to force his way into a Gastonia home, leading to the arrests of the suspected intruder and an alleged accomplice, according to police.
Home surveillance video captured a 57-year-old man trying to enter a home on Ware Avenue on July 12. Doorbell camera video shows the man trying to pry open a front door before trying to come through a window. During the attempted break-in, the homeowner fired a gunshot through a window, striking the man.
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Police said the man, along withhis girlfriend, then drove to a store and called 911, stating that the 57-year-old man had been shot in a drive-by shooting. Video shows officers responding to render medical aid.
As detectives investigated the reported drive-by shooting, they learned that the man and his girlfriend were suspects in a July 2 robbery reported at a home on Ware Avenue. Investigators then focused on that area and worked with the Gastonia Police Department’s Real Time Crime Center.
The department’s Real Time Crime Center received a gunshot detection alert from one of its 158 Flock Safety sensors at approximately 7:14 a.m., roughly within 100 feet of the Ware Avenue residence. Investigators matched the alert to the location of an attempted burglary.
Detectives went to the home and spoke with the resident, who reported being the victim of multiple burglaries and robberies involving the suspects during the previous month involving the same suspects.
Investigators determined that the man had been attempting to break into the home at approximately 7:13 a.m. when the homeowner fired through the window. Police said the couple’s account of a drive-by shooting was false.
The man and woman were arrested and each charged with first-degree burglary.
The department said in a statement to Police1 that its gunshot detection system had only been up for two weeks and this was the first solved case with the technology.
