Sanford man gets suspended sentence for assault
Apr. 16—A 23-year-old Sanford man was given a suspended 21-to-35-month sentence in the department of corrections after pleading guilty to assault inflicting serious injury, a felony.
Tyjon Philandus Snipes was given 12 months of supervised probation. After serving six months with no issues, he can be transferred to unsupervised probation. He was given credit for two days in jail. A charge of assault with a deadly weapon was dismissed as part of a plea agreement.
Snipes has several prior convictions, including carrying a concealed gun and felony marijuana possession.
Police responded to Central Carolina Hospital at 6:13 a.m. on Jan. 23, 2022. Bris Naquail Covington, 28, of Erwin was shot twice while inside a residence in the 100 block of Variety Lane in Sanford, according to a court document.
Covington drove himself to the hospital, court records state. A neighbor said they heard three gunshots, and a trail a blood was seen from the residence to the driveway.
When Detective Sgt. J.D. Simons arrived on scene, Rashon Ali Bethea pulled up in a white Ford F-150 pickup, according to a court document. Bethea allegedly said he shot the victim.
No charges for that were found in eCourts, but Bethea does have pending charges for possession of a firearm by a felon, carrying a concealed weapon and possession of marijuana stemming from May 9, 2023.
Police said they found $787 and two cell phones after a search warrant of a 2007 Honda Accord was executed, according to a court document.
A search of the Variety Lane residence yielded a Herstal Belgium handgun, a magazine with 16 bullets, four individual handgun and rifle bullets, a Magpul MOE rifle magazine, 10 white and blue pills, a digital scale and four iPhones.
Snipes was ordered to pay $435 in fees and ordered to have no contact with the victim. The firearm was to be disposed.
