A 23-year-old man suspected of shooting at least eight vehicles on a busy North Carolina highway and several homes in recent days, wounding one person, will remain in custody without bond for now, a judge ruled Friday.
Andrew Thomas Graney was arrested Thursday at a home in Raleigh, the state capital. Two dozen law enforcement officers with guns drawn approached the home and later led two people out in handcuffs, WRAL-TV reported. The other person was later released without charge, police said.
Graney is charged with one count of assault with a dangerous weapon with the intent to kill or inflict serious injury and 11 counts of firing a weapon into an occupied vehicle or dwelling, police said in a news release. Authorities have not disclosed a possible motive.
Graney, a senior at North Carolina State University, made his first court appearance on Friday via videoconference for a hearing to set bond and his next court date. He chose to have a court-appointed attorney. The attorney, Ricky Elmore, left court without speaking to reporters and didn't immediately respond to an email seeking comment afterward.
Bullet casings found at most of the shooting scenes preliminarily matched the same firearm; Graney's vehicle matched descriptions of a vehicle at some of the locations; and cellphone tower data placed his phone at each of the sites, Wake County Assistant District Attorney Stacy Newton said.
“This was an absolutely senseless and random series of acts of violence,” Newton said.
District Judge Debra Sasser ultimately decided to withhold bond, citing the fact that the shootings took place over four days. A future judge may allow bond, but Graney would need to prove he is not a danger to the public.
“This is one of those cases that put fear in the heart of the entire community,” Sasser said. “I had colleagues tell me, texting me, ‘don’t go on I-40 today.' And I'm sure many other people in the community received that as well."
An arrest has been made in a series of shootings on November 4, 6, and 7. Andrew Thomas
— Raleigh Police (@raleighpolice) November 8, 2024
Graney, 23, was taken into custody and charged with multiple offenses.
The full news release is available here: https://t.co/bAtQpGDC1p pic.twitter.com/waBqbMwQ1y
Relatives of Graney didn't immediately respond to voicemails or emails seeking comment.
Graney's mother, Treka Graney, told WRAL-TV that she hadn't seen her son for several months and that he was not raised with guns in the home. “This is not my son,” she said.
“It totally took me off guard,” she said. ”It is totally out of character. ... He’s a sweet boy. Everybody loves him. He always stands up straight, he’s very polite. He always follows the rules.”
The shootings, which apparently began Monday, stoked fear in the area. The case began to get attention after several people reported gunfire on a stretch of Interstate 40 in Raleigh and the suburb of Cary around the Wednesday morning rush, police said. Reports of similar shootings then emerged.
Authorities said eight vehicles were struck, including two on Monday, four on Wednesday and two on Thursday. Four area homes were shot on Wednesday, police said. All of the shootings were connected, Raleigh's police chief said.
One of the shots struck a woman in the leg early Monday while she was traveling on I-40, police said. Her injuries were not considered life-threatening. Most of the cars that were shot contained only the driver, but one had four occupants, authorities said in court records. People were also in the homes when they were shot, police said.
Investigators believe a Llama .45 Max 1 handgun was used in the shootings, court records show.
Graney's next court appearance is Nov. 27.
The attacks are just the latest highway shootings in the U.S. In Kentucky in September, law enforcement led a massive, multi-day manhunt for a man who shot 12 vehicles and wounded five people on Interstate 75. The man’s remains were later found and identified.