Vass Man Charged After Alleged Highway Shooting in Chatham County
A Moore County man is facing several charges after deputies say he fired a gun at a driver and his young daughter along NC-42 near Buckhorn Road in Chatham County.
Investigators say 31-year-old John Steven Ryals, of Vass, passed the victim in a no-passing zone before allegedly shooting toward the vehicle. The driver later told deputies that his daughter was also in the car at the time of the incident.
Ryals was not at the scene when law enforcement first arrived, but deputies used a description of the suspect’s vehicle and license plate to track down a white Chevrolet Avalanche registered in his name. According to investigators, social media checks, DMV records, and cellphone GPS data—obtained through a search warrant—helped place Ryals in the area when the shots were fired.
He is charged with two counts of misdemeanor assault by pointing a gun and one count of going armed to the terror of the people. Ryals is being held in the Lee County Jail on no bail while he awaits a District Court judge to set bond.
