Catawba County Man Gets 10-13 Years For Murder Of His Brother

A Vale man will spend 10 to 13 years in prison following his conviction for the attempted murder of his brother. The sentence was imposed during Catawba County Superior Court on Tuesday, June 13, 2023. 54-year-old Rodney Scott Wright was given the active period of incarceration after entering a guilty plea. The Honorable Gregory R. Hayes, Superior Court Judge from Catawba County, imposed the terms of the plea arrangement.

On April 30, 2021, deputies from the Catawba County Sheriff’s Office responded to a 911 call regarding shots being fired at a residence. The victim told deputies that he returned home, parked his truck and walked across the driveway toward the carport when he saw the defendant come out from behind some trash cans where he had been hiding.

Wright fired multiple shots from two .45-caliber handguns at the victim, who ran away. As the victim looked back, he saw the defendant fire a .22-caliber rifle in his direction. The victim ran into a nearby wooded area to seek cover until deputies arrived.

The investigation showed that the defendant took the firearms from one of the victim’s vehicles at the residence and then waited for him to arrive to ambush him. Investigators recovered multiple spent shell casings from the weapons used in the attack.

Video surveillance at the residence showed the defendant come on to the carport and hide to wait for the victim to come home before opening gunfire on him upon his arrival. The victim was not struck by any of the bullets.

The case was investigated by Bart Lowdermilk of the Catawba County Sheriff’s Office. Assistant District Attorney Nancy Lee handled prosecution for the State with aid from Legal Assistant Amy Bishoff.

Story: Rob Eastwood-WHKY