News

Man shot by deputies is charged with murder

By Bill Moss, Published: October 28, 2015

Henderson County sheriff's deputies shot a man after he led law officers on a pursuit from Buncombe County to Polk County, pointed a gun at other motorists, drove more than 20 milies on flat tires after racing through stop sticks and pointed a gun at officers after running away, the sheriff's office said.

The suspect, Pierre Lamont Griffin II, was under guard in the intensive care unit after having surgery at Spartanburg Regional Hospital. The pursuit started when Buncombe County officers identified the driver as a "person of interest" in an earlier shooting in that county.

The Asheville Police Department has issued a warrant charging Griffin with first degree murder in the shooting death of 31-year-old Uhon Trumanna Johnson, WLOS-TV reported. After the shooting, Griffin drove off in Johnson's vehicle, police said.

Here is the account from the sheriff's office:

Deputies from the Henderson County Sheriff's Office and officers from the Fletcher Police Department became involved in a vehicle pursuit on I-26 near the Buncombe County line at 11:20 p.m. Tuesday, the sheriff's office said in a news release.

The vehicle was being pursued from Buncombe County and had been identified by officers there as matching the description of a vehicle and person of interest from an earlier shooting incident in Asheville. Even stop sticks flattened his life side tires, the suspect continued through Henderson County on I-26. On two occasions during the pursuit, the suspect slowed and pointed a gun at the drivers of other vehicles, trying to force them off the road.

The vehicle pursuit continued on I-26 into Polk County and near the eastbound 61 mile marker, the North Carolina Highway Patrol initiated a maneuver that stopped the suspect’s pursuit. The suspect jumped and ran across into the westbound lanes of I-26 where he pointed a gun at pursuing officers.Two Henderson County deputies shot the suspect and he was taken into custody by the Polk County Sheriff’s Office.

The suspect was taken to Spartanburg Regional Hospital for surgery and remains under guard in ICU. Multiple charges are pending. The SBI, Henderson County Sheriff’s Office and other agencies are continuing their investigation.