Newton Shooting Suspect Taken Into Custody

The suspect in an officer-involved shooting in Newton has been taken into custody. On Wednesday, 24-year-old Keon Jemez Leach of East 1st Street in Newton was released from Atrium Health Medical Center in Charlotte and arrested without incident. Leach was transported back to Newton where he was processed by Newton Police for four felony counts apiece of assault with a deadly weapon with intent to kill and assault on a law enforcement officer with a firearm.

Leach is the individual who allegedly fired at police during an incident on July 8. Late that night the Newton Police Department received a call from the Catawba County Communications Center in reference to a 911 hang-up at the Catawba Pines Apartments on East 1st Street. Upon arrival on the scene, officers were confronted by numerous noncomplying subjects in the parking lot.

While the officers were trying to find the 911 hang-up caller, they made contact with a man who was brandishing a gun. While attempting to get the man to drop the gun, the individual reportedly fired several shots at the officers. After a brief standoff, the officers returned fire, striking the man, causing him to fall to the ground. The man, later identified as Keon Jemez Leach, was transported to Atrium Health Medical Center in Charlotte, where he remained until his release into custody Wednesday.

Per departmental policies, the officers and deputies involved in the shooting were placed on administrative leave pending the outcome of the investigations. Leach was jailed in the Catawba County Detention Facility under a $750,000 secured bond. A first appearance in District Court was scheduled today.

Story: Rob Eastwood-WHKY