2 Nash County deputies and suspect injured in I-95 shooting
NASH COUNTY, N.C. (WTVD) -- A Nash County deputy was shot multiple times when a driver opened fire after a traffic stop along Interstate 95 on Thursday morning.
Nash County officials told ABC11 that one deputy who was admitted to the hospital was in stable condition on Friday morning.
It happened between 9 a.m. and 9 30 a.m. near Exit 145 just north of Rocky Mount. The road was shut down and was closed for hours before reopening late Thursday afternoon.
Nash County Sheriff Keith Stone said at a news conference that a female deputy stopped a vehicle with Florida tags for a "speed offense" and became suspicious of "criminal activity afoot" in the car. The deputy, identified as Shelby Smith, ordered the driver, identified as Jarred Javon Ford, 33, of St. Petersburg, Florida, to step out of the 2008 Mercedes Benz.
Stone said that after a second deputy, William Toney, arrived at the scene, "Mr. Ford brandished a firearm, pulled it from his body" and began to fire at Toney, striking him multiple times.
WATCH: Sheriff Stone's full media briefing on the case
Smith returned fire and Ford ran away into a ditch, where he lost his weapon. Smith kept him controlled at gunpoint until other law officers arrived, Stone said. The sheriff said Ford was a convicted felon and possessed a semi-automatic weapon.
Both Toney and Ford were taken to Vidant Medical Center in Greenville. Stone said both had to undergo surgery. He said Toney was stable but did not know his exact condition.
Stone said the deputies survived "because"they were in God's hands." He said that, coupled with the "good training" these officers had, was what allowed them to survive the harrowing close-range encounter.
"This man had all intent of killing one of the people that protect you every day," Stone said.
The sheriff added that Ford has an extensive criminal record -- "seven pages of criminal activity" -- and was driving with a revoked license.
The real concern here to me is, Mr. Ford, and I will share this with you, the lengthy criminal record ranging from strangulation, to habitual driving without drivers license, to drug trafficking, to possession of firearms, just to name a few, to aggravated assault with a firearm," Stone said. "It is alarming to me that these type of individuals are out roaming the streets. It's concerning."
Stone said he believed Toney was shot at least three times, twice in the upper body and one in the lower. Toney, a K-9 handler, was wearing a protective vest, Stone said. His police dog had remained in the vehicle and was unharmed. Toney has been with the sheriff's office for a little more than six years, Stone said.
WATCH: Earlier report from the scene
Stone said he had spoken to Toney and that he was in "high spirits." Toney is in stable condition at the hospital.
The sheriff said earlier reports that both deputies were injured were not accurate. He clarified that Smith "was injured but not to the extent to be admitted into the hospital." Smith has been with the sheriff's office for two years and eight months, Stone said.
He did say that a state trooper who responded to the scene had gone to the hospital with "some type of injury or illness."
The State Bureau of Investigations is investigating as is standard when an officer is involved in a shooting. Stone said Smith fired about a dozen rounds. The Nash County Sheriff's Office and the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives are also investigating, Stone said.
