A North Carolina pastor and hunter has been shot dead after a man mistook the electronic animal caller he was using for coyote sounds.
Reverend Michael Seth Marsh, 26, was hunting coyotes with a 12-gauge shotgun, a rifle and an electronic coyote call on Monday when he was killed in a wooded area in Taylorsville, reported the Taylorsville Times.
Marsh, the pastor of Russell Gap Baptist Church, was shot several times in the chest with .223-caliber hunting rifle by Michael Dunn, 31, who told police he heard coyotes screaming nearby and believed the animals had trapped something in a tree.
Dunn was arrested by the Alexander County Sheriff’s Office and has been charged with involuntary manslaughter.
North Carolina pastor and hunter Michael Seth Marsh, 26 (left), was fatally shot after Michael Dunn, 31 (right), who mistook the electronic animal caller he was using for coyote sounds. Dunn has been arrested and is being charged with involuntary manslaughter
Marsh (right, with his wife and children) was hunting coyotes with a 12-gauge shotgun, a rifle and an electronic coyote call on Monday when he was killed in a wooded area in Taylorsville
Marsh, the pastor of Russell Gap Baptist Church (pictured) was shot several times in the chest with .223-caliber hunting rifle by Dunn who told police he heard coyotes screaming nearby and believed the animals had trapped something in a tree
Officials said Marsh was wearing camouflage and using an electronic coyote caller and set it up on the ground near a tree.
Dunn told police he heard the caller went to investigate and thought he saw something ‘brown and gray’ and fired two rounds at what he believed was a coyote, striking Marsh twice in the chest.
After he realized he had shot the hunter and not a wild animal, the hunter called the police around 5.50pm.
Alexander County Sheriff Chris Bowman said after Marsh was shot he stood up ‘and yelled: ‘Stop shooting, you hit me’,’ reported WBTV.
Marsh was rushed to Wake Forest Baptist Health Wilkes Medical Center in North Wilkesboro, but he died two hours after being shot. He is survived by his wife, Katy, and two children, Braelynn and Isaac.
Alexander County Sheriff Chris Bowman said the shooter lived nearby and was unaware Marsh was in the area when he fired into the woods.
Investigators say that Marsh (pictured) had a hunting license but they do not believe the shooter did. To shoot at coyotes in North Carolina, a hunting license is required
Dunn was placed under a $75,000 secured bond and his first court appearance is Monday at the Alexander Country District Court (Pictured, Marsh with his wife and children)
Marsh (far left) was rushed to Wake Forest Baptist Health Wilkes Medical Center in North Wilkesboro, but he died two hours after being shot. He is survived by his wife, Katy (right), and two children, Braelynn (center) and Isaac (being held)
Investigators say that Marsh had a hunting license but they do not believe the shooter did. To shoot at coyotes in North Carolina, a hunting license is required.
‘We are still working the case,’ Bowman told the Winston-Salem Journal. ‘We will gather all the evidence and will meet with District Attorney Sarah Kirkman to go over the investigation.’
A GoFundMe account has been set up to help offset funeral expenses and other financial burdens.
So far, $4,330 has been raised out of a $5,000 goal.
Dunn has been placed under a $75,000 secured bond and his first court appearance is Monday at the Alexander Country District Court.