Lincoln County man found guilty of first-degree murder in 2017 death

LINCOLN COUNTY, N.C. — On Wednesday, a Lincoln County Superior Court jury found a Lincoln County man guilty of first-degree murder and possession of a weapon of mass destruction.

Ronald Wayne Vaughn Jr., 29, was then sentenced to life in prison without the possibility of parole.

Deputies were dispatched to Wildale Lane around 11 p.m. on Aug. 25, 2017, after the Lincoln County Communications Center received a call about a shooting incident.

Deputies arrived to find Vaughn Jr. at the residence and Gary Lee Somerset, 27, in a car in the backyard. Somerset had been shot in the chest and neck at close range with a sawed-off shotgun. He was pronounced dead at the scene.

Vaughn Jr. was taken into custody without incident at the scene. Detective Justin Link interviewed Vaughn at the sheriff’s office, where he confessed to shooting Somerset with the shotgun which was recovered at the scene.

Vaughn is being held in the Harven A. Crouse Detention Center, awaiting transport to the North Carolina Department of Corrections.

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