A man was wounded in an alleged Saturday shooting incident on Salem Highway, prompting Patrick County authorities to launch a search for a Martinsville man believed to have fled the scene.
The Patrick County Sheriff’s Office was notified by the Stuart Community Hospital on Saturday, January 24, that a patient arrived at the emergency room with a gunshot wound. Deputies responded and interviewed the male victim. They learned that he was allegedly shot at a vacant lot on Salem Highway, just south of Stuart.
Deputies then responded to that location, secured the crime scene, and collected evidence.
Sheriff Dan Smith said the victim had pre-planned a meeting at the location on Salem Highway with Michael Cody Solomon, 29, of 141 Navy Lane, Martinsville.
Solomon arrived first at the scene, in a black SUV, Smith said. The victim, identified as Allen Michael Bowman, 27, of Stuart, arrived shortly thereafter. Smith alleged that during this meeting, several rounds were fired at Bowman, striking him once in the wrist.
The suspect allegedly fled the scene and is believed to be in Henry County.
The Patrick County Sheriff’s Office currently holds warrants on Solomon for attempted armed robbery, malicious wounding, and use of a firearm in the commission of a felony in connection with the incident.
Anyone with information on Solomon’s whereabouts is urged to contact the Patrick County Sheriff’s Office 911 Communications Center confidentiality at 276-694-3161, or the Henry County 911 Emergency Communications Center at 276-638-8751.
“We are working closely with our HCSO partners to see that Solomon is arrested expeditiously,” Smith said in a Sunday news release. He added that the incident was isolated, between known acquaintances, and the general public is not in danger.
Investigator Jason Kruse is leading the investigation.
