Key Takeaways
- A man falsely reported being shot in a drive-by, but police found he was shot while breaking into a home.
- The homeowner, 74-year-old Donald Bolynn, will not face charges for shooting Cedric Ford, who was attempting a burglary.
- Bolynn was concerned about previous burglary attempts during the last month, adding context to the shooting incident.
- Ford, who suffered a gunshot wound, has been charged with attempted first-degree burglary after the investigation.
- This case remains under investigation, with further charges pending against Ford and his accomplice, Sanja Stallings.
Estimated reading time: 4 minutes
GASTONIA, NC — A man who told police he was shot in the chest during a drive-by was actually shot by a 74-year-old homeowner while trying to break into the man’s house, according to the Gastonia Police Department. The department announced that 57-year-old Cedric Ford and his girlfriend, 47-year-old Sanja Stallings, now face burglary-related charges, and the homeowner will not be charged.
The homeowner is 74-year-old Donald Bolynn, as reported by WBTV, which also obtained his home surveillance video showing a man banging on the front door and prying at a window. Bolynn told the station he lives with several health issues and does not hear well, but the banging was intense enough that he knew someone was outside. “Got up off the couch and come to the front door and looked out. I didn’t see nothing,” he said. Then he saw a man at the window. “That’s when I got my gun and shot,” Bolynn said.
Here is how it started, according to the department’s account. On Sunday, July 12, 2026, at approximately 7:17 a.m., officers responded to the QuikTrip on West Franklin Boulevard for a report of a man with a gunshot wound. They found Ford suffering from a single gunshot wound to the chest. Ford and Stallings told officers an unknown person in a white vehicle had shot Ford near South Washington Street and Overman Avenue and fled.
That story did not survive the investigation. Detectives canvassing the area learned Ford and Stallings were suspects in a robbery reported on Ware Avenue on July 2. Working with the department’s Real Time Crime Center, investigators used Flock Safety’s audio detection system, part of a network of 158 gunshot detection receivers across the city, and it flagged a gunshot at approximately 7:14 a.m. within roughly 100 feet of that same Ware Avenue address.
Detectives went to the house and found the other half of the story. Police say Ford was attempting to break into the residence at approximately 7:13 a.m. when the homeowner fired a single round through a window, striking him. Bolynn told investigators he did not know he had hit anyone. He did know the break-in attempt stopped. After being shot, Ford drove himself and Stallings to the QuikTrip, where they called 911 and waited for help. Investigators determined the couple’s drive-by account was false.
There is a backdrop here worth noting. Police say Bolynn had reported being the victim of multiple burglaries and robberies within the previous month involving these same suspects. That history is investigative context, and it explains why detectives shifted their focus to Ware Avenue so quickly. It is not why the shot was justified. The justification is what was happening at 7:13 that morning: a man forcing his way into the home of an elderly, disabled resident who cannot hear well and had nowhere to go. That is an imminent threat of death or serious bodily harm to the person inside, not a property dispute. It is the same standard armed citizens across the country carry under every day, and police say Bolynn will not face charges.
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Think about his position for a second. Seventy-four years old, hard of hearing, living alone with health issues, and by his own account he could not even see the threat at first. He got up, looked, saw a man at his window, and fired once. One round ended the attempt. Normally I would say shooting through a door or window may not be the best choice, since you cannot always confirm the threat on the other side. But reviewing the surveillance footage, you can see the man forcibly trying to break into the home, and police sided with the homeowner, announcing he will not face charges.
Ford was hospitalized for the gunshot wound. Upon his release, he was arrested and charged with attempted first-degree burglary and felony obstruction of justice. Stallings was arrested and charged with first-degree burglary. Those charges are allegations, and neither has been convicted. The case remains under investigation, and police say additional charges related to the attempted burglary and the false report are pending review by the Gaston County District Attorney’s Office.
