On July 21st and July 22nd, 2024, Investigators with the Beaufort County Sheriff’s Office conducted follow-up interviews with the victim at the hospital and additional family members in Washington. This information led to new developments in the case.
As a result, investigators with the Beaufort County Sheriff Office obtained additional warrants on 31-year-old Ryan Austin Stalls of Washington, charging him with Attempted Murder, 1st Degree Kidnapping, 1st Degree Sex Offense, Assault by Strangulation and Larceny of a Motor Vehicle.
These charges are additional to the warrants obtained on July 19th 2024 from the initial investigation of Assault with a Deadly Weapon Inflicting Serious Injury and Assault with a Deadly Weapon. The North Carolina Department of Adult Corrections obtained the Parole Violation charges as a result of the initial warrants.
Stalls was entered as a wanted person in the National Crime Information Center (NCIC) on July 19th and a Be On the Lookout (BOLO) was sent out state wide to locate him and the dark blue 2018 Hyundai Santa Fe he was operating.
Deputies searched all known locations in Beaufort County and requested assistance from Martin County Sheriff’s Office to check a location in their jurisdiction.
On July 22, 2024 at 11:44 am Deputies responded to Cherry Run Rd. near Horse Pen Swamp Rd. in Washington for a suspicious person call. The suspect was on foot at the time of the call. As deputies arrived in the area, School Resource Officer Hudnell spotted a vehicle in the back of a field located off of VOA Rd., West of Brown Rd. SRO Hudnell was able to positively identify the vehicle as the one operated by Stalls. The vehicle was abandoned in the field.
Deputies from the Criminal Investigations Division, Drug Unit, Command Staff, Patrol Division, and School Resource Officers responded and established a perimeter. Deputies went door to door, searching and notifying residents in the area. The drone was launched to provide an aerial search within the perimeter and K-9 Athos was deployed to search the last known location of Stalls.
At approximately 1:49 pm, Detective Sergeant Salinas and Detective Taylor located Stalls as he exited a wood line into a field on Horse Pen Swamp Road. Stalls ran and Detectives pursued him on foot, apprehending him at the back of the field. EMS responded to the scene to assess Stalls’ injuries and he was transported to the hospital for treatment and released to deputies. Stalls was served and confined in Beaufort County Detention Center under no bond.
Beaufort County Sheriff Scott Hammonds would like to thank all the deputies who responded and worked to locate Stalls so justice can be served.
