An Augusta man who shot a Richmond County deputy in the face early Thursday began firing almost as soon as officers went inside his home to talk about a disturbance, GBI officials said.
Vernon Cratic Jr., 34, is accused of shooting Deputy Michael Cole, who was listed in stable condition at Augusta University Medical Center. The suspect is a parolee with a lengthy record of arrests. He served less than one year of a five-year sentence for burglary and was released in April 2020.
On Thursday, deputies responded at 1:41 a.m. to a disturbance call on the 2200 block of Bungalow Road. When they arrived, deputies learned that Cratic was inside the home and had a gun.
“Two deputies entered the home to speak with Cratic about the disturbance call when he began firing at the deputies,” the GBI said in a press release. “The deputies returned fire but did not hit Cratic. During the exchange of gunfire, one of the deputies was shot.”
Additional units responded to the scene and secured the home until the Richmond County SWAT team arrived. RCSO SWAT began negotiations with Cratic to have him surrender peacefully. While negotiations were taking place, Cratic continued to shoot at law enforcement officers on scene.
At around 4 a.m., Cratic surrendered to members of the RCSO SWAT team. He was taken to the Charles B. Webster Detention Center and charged with five counts of aggravated assault upon a peace officer, as well as weapon possession and possession of a firearm by a convicted felon.
The officer who was shot was taken by Sheriff’s Office personnel to Augusta University Medical Center where he is being treated for his injuries. No other officers were injured during the incident.
The GBI will conduct an independent investigation. Once complete, the case file will be given to the Augusta Judicial Circuit District Attorney for review and prosecution.
This is the 101st officer involved shooting the GBI has been asked to investigate in 2022.
Meanwhile, Deputy Cole’s sister, Kyla, is working to raise money for him on GoFundMe. On the page, she wrote this messaege:
“Cole is a 5 year member of the Richmond County Sheriffs department. At 25 years old Cole is a fearless, strong, heroic and knowledgable Police Officer who always puts others safety and best interest first. On November 10, 2022 at approximately 2am, Cole was responding to disturbance call while responding to that call he was was shot in the face. As a result of the selfless valor demonstrated we have now started this page to help support Officer Cole and his family during their time of need, due to Officer Cole being unable to work for an extended period of time. Any and all donations are beyond appreciated.”
Greg Rickabaugh is the Jail Report contributor for The Augusta Press. Reach him at greg.rickabaugh@theaugustapress.com
