Gunfire, knife threats reported in domestic dispute

Published 6:15 am Thursday, August 20, 2015

VALDOSTA — Valdosta police are investigating a domestic dispute after a man allegedly fired a single gunshot at another man, who reportedly threatened him with a knife.

At approximately 3:30 p.m. Tuesday, the Valdosta Police Department responded to a residence in the 500 block of West Gordon Street in reference to a 911 report of a 21-year-old male running in the area with a handgun and telling people someone was trying to hurt him, according to incident reports.

“The officers secured the handgun and spoke with the male. He said he was in Valdosta from Florida to meet with (the other) male he had met online,” said VPD Capt. Bobbi McGraw. “The (first) male and the (second) male became intimate, and the (first) male decided he wanted to stop the physical contact.”

The man reportedly told officers the 20-year-old became irate and threatened the victim with a knife, said McGraw.

“He grabbed a handgun that was lying on a dresser and fired one round toward the ground to scare him,” said McGraw.

The other man dropped the knife and ran out of the house. The man holding the gun also ran out of the house, according to police.

Officers located a shell casing and also talked with one of the men who said the other “became angry after talking with him and grabbed the gun and tried to shoot,” said McGraw.

The case is being investigated, and no arrests have been made due to conflicting statements, said McGraw.

Adam Floyd is a crime reporter at the Valdosta Daily Times.