A 59-year-old Iredell County man was just arrested for open firing on a group of teens who were playing “ding-dong-ditch” in his neighborhood.
According to the Iredell County Sheriff’s Office, deputies were conducting a traffic stop along Taylorsville Highway around 11:20 p.m. on Jan. 3 when they heard gunfire coming from a nearby neighborhood. Dispatchers then alerted them to a 911 call reporting a gunshot victim on Castle Pines Drive. When deputies arrived, they found an empty vehicle with its passenger door open, broken glass, and multiple bullet holes.
Five juveniles were located in a nearby field, one suffering a gunshot wound to the leg. First responders transported the injured minor to Wake Forest Baptist Hospital for treatment.
As investigators searched the area, deputies said 59-year-old Craig Steven Mason approached and admitted he fired the shots. According to the sheriff’s office, Mason told detectives he was awakened by loud noises outside his home, retrieved a handgun, and walked outside to investigate. He said he saw a vehicle driving through the neighborhood without headlights and fired four times as it passed.
Deputies later confirmed Mason did not live at any of the homes targeted in the “ding-dong ditch” prank and had not been approached by the juveniles before the shooting.
Mason was arrested on Jan. 5 and charged with felony assault with a deadly weapon with intent to kill inflicting serious injury, four counts of felony assault with a deadly weapon, and felony discharging a weapon into an occupied vehicle causing serious bodily injury. A magistrate denied bond, and a district court judge will determine the bond at a later hearing.
The sheriff’s office said the investigation remains active as detectives continue interviewing witnesses and reviewing evidence.
