BOTETOURT COUNTY, Va. – The Botetourt County Sheriff’s Office is investigating a shooting incident that occurred early on Sunday.
At approximately 3:25 a.m., the Botetourt County 911 Emergency Communications Center received a call from a woman reporting that she and her boyfriend had been fired upon at a home in the 20,000 block of Botetourt Road in Eagle Rock, Virginia.
An investigation revealed that the woman and her boyfriend responded to the home after receiving an alarming message from her daughter, who claimed she was involved in a domestic dispute with her boyfriend.
Upon arriving at the home to pick up her daughter, the mother encountered a male subject restraining her daughter by the arm.
The male then brandished a firearm, and as the mother attempted to intervene, he fired two shots in her direction.
Fortunately, no one was struck or injured during the incident.
Deputies responded quickly to ensure there was no ongoing threat to the public.
It is believed that both the suspect and the victims fled before the arrival of deputies.
It is unclear whether the daughter, Arieanna D. McDorman, 32, of Clifton Forge, Virginia, who is also wanted out of Alleghany County, left with the male willingly.
The suspect has been identified as Joseph Lee Bray, 34, of Eagle Rock, Virginia.
As a result of this incident, Bray has been charged with multiple offenses, including abduction, attempted murder (two counts), shooting across a roadway (two counts), possession of a firearm by a convicted felon, use of a firearm in the commission of a felony, maliciously shooting at an occupied vehicle (four counts), domestic assault, brandishing (two counts), and reckless handling of a firearm (two counts).
Joseph Lee Bray is currently not in custody, and his whereabouts are unknown.
