HAMLET — One man is accused of shooting another following a pair of arguments early Sunday.
According to investigators with the Hamlet Police Department, 28-year-old Michael Aaron West got into an argument around 3 a.m. over a phone charger with one of the residents of a Jones Street home.
The resident left and came back around 8 a.m., when they got into another argument, investigators say.
The second argument led to West allegedly shooting the unnamed victim in the leg with handgun.
The weapon has not yet been recovered.
As of Wednesday, investigators said the victim remained at an undisclosed hospital where he is being treated for his injury.
West was arrested and charged with a felony count of attempted first-degree murder and booked into the Richmond County Jail under a $100,000 secured bond.
Jail records show West is also charged with a probation violation from the Division of Community Corrections, as well as a probation violation and charge of resisting a public officer from the Richmond County Sheriff’s Office. The combined bond on those three charges is $41,000 secured.
Online court records show West has a pending felony conspiracy charge from the Rockingham Police Department.
He also has three pending charges from the sheriff’s office: misdemeanor larceny; obtaining property by false pretenses; and misdemeanor probation violation.
He has court dates scheduled for May 15, June 1 and 4, and July 23.
Records with the N.C. Department of Public Safety Division of Adult Correction show West was given a 12-month suspended sentence in June 2019 when he was convicted of misdemeanor larceny and filing a false report to police radio.
West was first convicted in 2011 of misdemeanor breaking and entering.
All defendants facing criminal charges are presumed innocent until proven guilty in a court of law.
