What began as a road rage incident ended in the wounding of one individual and the arrest of another. Local law enforcement officers received a call around 6:30 p.m. October 27 that shots had been fired on Route 19 near the Blue Bird Bus Garage.
Deputy Andrew Jordan of the Braxton County Sheriff’s Department, along with Deputies Cochran, Johnson and State Trooper B.J. Wiley responded to the incident. Upon their arrival they located the injured victim on the shoulder of the highway near the intersection of Herold Road and Route 19.
The officers provided medical attention to the victim who appeared to have been shot in the left hip with a small caliber firearm. After medical personnel arrived on scene, the victim, later identified as Xzavier Anderson, told officers that he had been involved in a verbal altercation with another driver. “I called him a bitch and he shot me.”
The Braxton County 9-1-1 Center advised the officers that the suspect reportedly had fled the scene in a green colored Chevrolet SUV headed toward Summerville. The Command Center notified Nicholas County officials to be on the lookout for a vehicle matching that description.
Officers apprehended a vehicle matching the description and took the driver into custody without incident. Officers were able to locate an AR style rifle inside the SUV.
The suspect was identified as Parris Diall King Jr., 25, of Flora, Mississippi. King told the Summersville State Police in an interview that he was responsible for Anderson’s injuries.
Local authorities interviewed several witnesses, viewed video tapes from a passing motorist driving a Tesla was well as security cameras footage from the Blue Bird Garage which clearly showed an individual matching King’s description, firing a shot from a small rifle that appeared to strike Anderson in the hip.
King was transported back to Braxton County where he underwent processing at the Sutton Detachment of the West Virginia State Police before being lodged in the Central Regional Jail. He is charged with malicious assault. If found guilty, King could face up to five years in prison and a fine not to exceed $500.
The accused was arraigned before Braxton County Magistrate David Singleton where his bond was set at $25,000 cash only. The preliminary hearing pertaining to the charges was waved and the case transferred to Circuit Court. King has been released on bond to await further court appearances.
