Father shot in SUV with young kids inside, police say

LONG VIEW, N.C. — A father was shot over the weekend while inside his SUV with his young children inside, police said.

The 6-year-old boy and girl were his twin children. They were not hurt, but family members said they were in the SUV when their father was shot in the chest and the hand. It happened in Long View on Third Avenue Northwest near Highway 321.

Long View police said the victim, Ryan Wheeler, was able to drive to a Cubbard Express, a convenience store not too far away, where witnesses said he collapsed outside of the SUV.

“Kids in the car, they haven’t done nothing. They don’t even know what it’s about,” one witness said. “Whatever he’s got coming to him, he needs to pay for it.”

Family members said the twins were visiting their grandparents over the weekend when Wheeler and his wife went to pick them up. Investigators said an argument broke out at the home, and that was when Kevin Gibson, his wife’s brother, began shooting at the family’s SUV, striking it several times both in the driveway and along the roadway.

Police said Gibson was still at the home when they arrived. Channel 9′s Dave Faherty was there shortly after he was taken into custody and charged with multiple counts of assault with deadly weapon with intent to kill and firing into an occupied vehicle.

Crystal Miller lives just down the street and is glad the 6-year-old boy and girl were not hurt.

“So careless. They seem to not even think about the consequence of their action or anybody else at this point and it’s really sad,” she said.

Police said Monday morning that Wheeler is in stable condition at the hospital. Authorities said they are still trying to determine what the argument was about prior to the shooting. Neighbors said too often, people are resorting to firearms to settle disputes.

“It don’t make no difference, young kids gone, they’re gone. Just stop it,” one neighbor said. “Everybody needs to stop it. Be with your own blood. Stop the violence. Just stop it.”

Investigators said they might file additional charges against Gibson, but they plan on consulting with the district attorney before that happens. They did say they found a handgun at the scene.

(WATCH BELOW: CMPD investigating deadly shooting in east Charlotte)

CMPD investigating deadly shooting in east Charlotte

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