Local News

911 caller alerted Newton Grove police to possible kidnapping; chief then shot suspect in scuffle

Security camera video obtained by WRAL News shows the Newton Grove police chief shooting a man after a confrontation at a local gas station.

Posted Updated

By
Bryan Mims
, WRAL reporter
NEWTON GROVE, N.C. — Security camera video obtained by WRAL News shows the Newton Grove police chief shooting a man after a confrontation at a local gas station.

The shooting happened Tuesday afternoon outside Sam's Circle Mart on Clinton Street, when Police Chief Greg Warren responded to a report of a woman being kidnapped and raped.

The man, identified Thursday as Michael Almer Rich, 48, of Clinton, was in fair condition at an area hospital.

A woman called 911 from the Dollar General store on Main Street to report another woman said she had been assaulted and was being held against her will.

"I was coming out of the store, and I was stopped by a woman that was in a car right in front of the store that has asked me to call 911, not to look at her or anything," the caller told the 911 operator. "The man she is with has a gun, and she feels threatened. She said he has already raped her and everything."

The caller calmly provided a description of the suspected kidnapper, as well as a description and the license plate number of his car. She then followed the vehicle for a while to let authorities know it had stopped at Sam's Circle Mart, on the other side of the town's traffic circle.

Security camera video shows the man suspected in the reported kidnapping at Sam's Circle Mart, near the gas pumps, when Warren encounters him.

The two are seen speaking and then getting into a scuffle.

It appears that the man pulls a gun, and that's when Warren shoots him.

Once the man is down, the video shows Warren picking up a gun from the ground.

Sampson County Sheriff Jimmy Thornton said the woman who called 911 was a hero, saying the details she provided were vital to keep law enforcement officers and the victim safe.

"As to her calmness and coolness, she was able to get very good descriptive information, which made it much easier for law enforcement to make sure, you know, that we were dealing with the right car [and the] right individual," Thornton said.

Authorities have obtained warrants charging Rich with first-degree kidnapping, first-degree sexual offense, breaking and entering and possession of a firearm by a convicted felon. He will be charged upon his release from the hospital.

Rich's criminal record dates to 2004 and includes convictions for drug and driving offenses, as well as illegally carrying a concealed weapon twice, according to state Department of Public Safety records.

Warren is one of only two officers in Newton Grove, a town of about 500 people, but he is now on administrative leave, which is standard for officer-involved shootings.

The Sampson County Sheriff's Office is investigating what led to the shooting, while the State Bureau of Investigation is investigating the shooting itself.

WRAL Fayetteville reporter Gilbert Baez contributed to this report.

 Credits 

Copyright 2024 by Capitol Broadcasting Company. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.