A North Carolina resident, James Raeford, 39, is facing a series of charges after allegedly shooting at a van and injuring a toddler. The incident, which took place on Sunday evening in Charlotte, was reportedly triggered by the child’s father parking too close to Raeford’s vehicle. Raeford is now facing charges that include assault with a deadly weapon with intent to kill and six counts of discharging a weapon into an occupied property.
The incident took place around 8 p.m. at an apartment complex on Sloping Oaks Road. The father was driving his white GMC Savana work van with his 3-year-old son in the front passenger seat. After parking his van, he noticed an unidentified man, later identified as Raeford, shooting at his vehicle. It is estimated that Raeford fired at least six rounds, one of which hit the child in the back.
Reacting to the gunfire, the father quickly drove away from the complex to a location about 10 minutes away and called 911. Deputies from the Mecklenburg County Sheriff’s Office met with them and gathered more information about the incident. The injured child was transported to a hospital and, as of Monday, was expected to survive.
A witness reported hearing four or five gunshots and seeing a man, described as having braids or dreadlocks and wearing dark clothes, yelling and mentioning getting another clip for his gun. The man then entered a third-floor apartment and later left.
Upon investigating the apartment, officers spoke with a woman who said she was at work when her boyfriend, Raeford, called her about a dispute in the parking lot involving a white van parked too close to his car. The woman added that Raeford claimed the van’s driver tried to run him over, but he did not mention firing his weapon. Officers were allowed to search the apartment and found an empty black 9mm magazine.
Raeford later approached officers outside a magistrate’s office and admitted his involvement in the shooting. He was subsequently arrested and provided his account of the incident. Raeford claimed that the van’s driver ignored his requests to move the vehicle and then drove towards him, prompting him to fire his weapon. He also admitted to hiding his gun at his parent’s house out of fear of retaliation.
The van was later examined and found to have six bullet holes, one of which had entered through the back of the front passenger seat and hit the child. The trajectory of the bullets suggested that Raeford had fired his weapon as the van passed by him. Raeford made his first court appearance on Tuesday and is being held on a $500,000 secured bond. His next court date is scheduled for November 5.