Saturday evening, a resident of Webb Road happened to notice some plaster on the floor in the guest room of their house. When she and her husband explored the cause, they found a bullet hole in the side of their house.

Darrell Nichols and his wife told Rowan County Sheriff deputies that it appeared someone had shot into their home Saturday night, and in conversations with a neighbor, they were able to nail down just when it happened.

According to reports from investigators, the neighbor confirmed that at 1:48 a.m. Saturday morning, May 10, they heard three gun shots and then heard a car rev up the engine and speed away.

Nichols said he sleeps with a CPAP machine and so they didn’t hear the shots. But his three-year-old granddaughter was sleeping with them, 10 feet from where the bullet went through the wall.

Nichols works as a fire inspector in Rowan County and drives a county vehicle that he parks in his driveway.

“All I can think of for a motive is maybe someone is mad at the county, saw my vehicle and took some shots,” he said. Whatever the motive, Nichols is not happy that someone shot into his home.

Sheriff Travis Allen said he can’t image anyone being mad at Nichols, and doesn’t know why anyone would shoot at his house, but deputies took a report and collected two shell casings from the scene.

Nichols is offering a $1,000 reward for any information leading to an arrest and conviction in the case, and has reached out to Crime Stoppers to see if they will help.

“I wanted to give an incentive for someone to talk,” said Nichols, who said his wife is now uncomfortable in their home, afraid to sit in front of the window.

If anyone has any information, they can contact the Rowan County Sheriff’s Office at 704-216-8700, or Rowan County Crime Stoppers at www.rowancrimestoppers.org or by calling 1-866-639-JAIL (5245).