Suspect in Columbus County deputy shooting faces judge after 11-hour manhunt
COLUMBUS COUNTY, NC (WWAY) — A man accused of shooting a Columbus County sheriff’s deputy during an altercation Wednesday made his first court appearance Thursday morning following a nearly 11-hour manhunt.
William Robert Smith Jr., 48, appeared virtually in a Columbus County courtroom.
Smith is charged with attempted first-degree murder, possession of a firearm by a felon and assault on a law enforcement officer with a deadly weapon.
During Thursday’s hearing, Smith was appointed an attorney and ordered held without bond. His next court appearance is scheduled for Oct. 1 for a probable cause hearing.
The charges stem from an incident that began just before 8 a.m. Wednesday.
According to the Columbus County Sheriff’s Office, Deputy Joe Byrd attempted to stop a vehicle, but the driver fled. Authorities said the driver later crashed the vehicle and ran away on foot.
Byrd later encountered the suspect, and an altercation followed. Byrd was shot in the right arm, according to authorities, and the suspect fled again.
The shooting prompted an extensive search involving local, state and federal law enforcement agencies.
The North Carolina State Bureau of Investigation said Smith was arrested shortly before 7 p.m. Wednesday and taken for medical treatment.
Byrd, a 29-year law enforcement veteran, was taken to Novant Health New Hanover Regional Medical Center. Columbus County Sheriff Bill Rogers said the deputy was in stable condition.
Rogers said Wednesday that he went directly to the hospital after learning Byrd had been shot while other law enforcement agencies took over much of the search.
“I went straight to the hospital to him instead of coming here,” Rogers said. “And I got calls from several sheriffs, the SBI director, the SAC for the SBI here, they said Sheriff, you take care of your man, we got this search, you handle him.”
Rogers said the assistance meant other agencies had the search covered while he stayed with Byrd.
“So that means a lot right there, when you got the guys behind you who got your back,” Rogers said.
The search was complicated by the rural terrain in the area. Rogers previously told WWAY the area has limited cellphone service and extensive woods, hunting trails and lanes.
Multiple agencies assisted the Columbus County Sheriff’s Office and SBI during the manhunt, including the North Carolina State Highway Patrol, FBI, U.S. Marshals and sheriff’s offices from surrounding counties.
Smith remains in custody. The charges against him are allegations, and he is presumed innocent unless proven guilty in court.
