'We're going to find him': Wake County Sheriff vows to find man suspected of arson, shooting

Andrea Blanford Image
Tuesday, December 21, 2021
Wake County Sheriff vows to find 'dangerous' suspect
Raequon Mudd, 24, has been on the run since Thursday

RALEIGH, N.C. (WTVD) -- The manhunt for an armed and dangerous suspect in north Raleigh drudged toward the end of its fourth day Monday with a promise from Wake County's top cop that it was only a matter of time until he's caught.

Raequon Mudd, 24, has been on the run since Thursday when Sheriff Gerald Baker said an eviction notice and domestic dispute ended with Mudd setting the house he rented with his girlfriend in Garner on fire and then shooting into her parents' Knightdale home where she was staying.

On Friday morning, Wake County Sheriff's deputies said they spotted Mudd driving a friend's borrowed car near Falls of Neuse and Durant Roads in north Raleigh, tried to pull him over, but a chase ensued.

Mudd crashed the car a short time later near Honeycutt and Durant Roads and took off running.

Deputies said he left a cell phone in the crashed vehicle but took the firearm and has been able to evade authorities ever since.

Sheriff Gerald Baker explains the steps his department is taking to track down and capture Raequon Mudd.

Over the weekend, homeowners in several north Raleigh neighborhoods reported sightings of the suspect.

"I went and I looked out the window and when I looked down there was this guy on hands and knees in our bush and crawling alongside of the house," said one homeowner who spotted Mudd earlier in the afternoon on Saturday

Another homeowner in the same neighborhood near Honeycutt Rd. captured him on surveillance footage from a wildlife camera where he was seen walking barefoot into a wooded area behind their house.

The NC State Highway Patrol, Raleigh Police, and other agencies have joined the sheriff's office in the search for Mudd using a helicopter, drones, and K-9s.

"We're going to find him," said Baker. "There's no questions about that. We're not going to stop until we do. We consider him to be dangerous. We believe him to be armed. And by all information we've been receiving, he has determined to cause harm to his ex-girlfriend so we're here to try to keep that from happening."

Baker urged people who live in north Raleigh to keep garages closed, doors and cars locked as well as crawl spaces and storage units on their property, asking anyone who sees suspicious activity to call 911.

A search continues for an armed 24-year-old suspect who fled on foot after a police chase and crash in north Raleigh.