Two Caneyville residents have been shot multiple times as they followed two men who tried to break into their residence.
Initially, Grayson County Sheriff’s Office Sgt. Fred Norder and Deputy Brandon Rafferty were told by Central Dispatch at approximately 1:00 Wednesday morning that someone was trying to break into a residence in the 2500 block of Richland Road. As Norder and Rafferty were en route, the suspects left the residence in two vehicles, with the homeowners following in a Dodge Challenger.
As the two male suspects, one in a dark colored SUV and the other in a red pickup truck, traveled in the 600 block Richland Road (west, toward Hwy 62), with the victims following close behind, at least one of the suspects opened fire on the Challenger.
The two victims, 59-year-old Johnnie Hayes and 39-year-old Wanda Ferguson, were struck multiple times in their upper bodies, with at least one of the victims shot in the face.
After the Challenger’s driver was shot, the vehicle left the roadway and crashed, coming to rest in a tree line not far off the roadway.
The red pickup truck, which was reported stolen by a Richland Road homeowner at about 3:30 Monday morning, apparently became disabled just a few yards from where the Challenger wrecked. The suspect driving the pickup then got into the SUV and the suspects fled the scene toward Hwy 62.
EMS was dispatched to the scene and transported Hayes and Ferguson to Caneyville Elementary School where both victims were airlifted, Ferguson to Vanderbilt University Medical Center and Hayes to University of Louisville Hospital. Ferguson has since been treated and released, while Hayes remains hospitalized with non-life threatening injuries.
Norder, Rafferty, GCSO Chief Deputy Jarrod Mudd, and Leitchfield Police Officer Keith Harrell secured the scene and initiated the investigation. The Caneyville Fire Department coordinated a landing zone for the medial helicopters and blocked off Richland Road as police worked the crime scene. Kentucky State Police is leading the investigation.
The two unidentified suspects remain at large.
K105.com will have more information on this story as it becomes available.
(This article has been amended to include the names of the victims, and that Ferguson was airlifted to Vanderbilt University MC)
By Ken Howlett, News Director
Contact Ken at ken@k105.com or 270-259-6000
