Gunfire ripped through the night as a stolen vehicle barreled at over 100 miles per hour through North Carolina’s backroads, with a fugitive passenger, Cedrick Tyler Armstrong, 36, of Zebulon, NC, blazing a 9mm handgun at pursuing officers. Yesterday, after a two-day jury trial in federal court, Armstrong was convicted of possession of a firearm by a convicted felon — the culmination of a violent rampage that began with a routine traffic stop and ended in a citywide manhunt.
The chaos erupted on October 12, 2018, when a Wendell Police Department investigator pulled over a vehicle with two occupants. Armstrong was riding shotgun. When a baggie pulled from the glove box tested positive for cocaine, officers moved to extract the driver and Armstrong. A violent struggle broke out. The investigator managed to cuff the driver’s left wrist before the car surged forward, dragging him roughly 25 feet. Injuries were sustained, but the officer climbed back into his cruiser and gave chase.
What followed was a white-knuckle, multi-county pursuit reaching speeds exceeding 100 mph. Minutes into the chase, at least nine shots were fired from the passenger side — directly at the lead patrol car. The bullets missed, but the message was clear: these suspects were armed and desperate. For the safety of officers and civilians, the chase was called off. Investigators later recovered a spent 9mm shell casing near the shooting zone — a smoking gun in more ways than one.
Armstrong and the driver vanished for hours before being tracked to a home on Beauty Avenue in Raleigh, where they were arrested. A search of the residence turned up a 9mm handgun stashed in the toilet reservoir, complete with an extended magazine. Forensic analysis confirmed the weapon fired the shell casing recovered at the shooting scene. Also seized: the handcuffs used during the initial stop, a handcuff key, drugs, vehicle keys, and a live 9mm round matching ammunition from the firearm.
Digital evidence sealed the case. A forensic review of Armstrong’s phone uncovered text messages in which he admitted to shooting at law enforcement. Further investigation tied the ammunition in the Beauty Avenue gun to a second 9mm round found inside the recovered vehicle. The driver now faces state charges, while Armstrong stares down a federal sentence of up to ten years in prison.
Acting U.S. Attorney G. Norman Acker, III, announced the conviction following trial before U.S. District Judge James C. Dever, III. The Wendell Police Department led the investigation with critical support from the Wake County Sheriff’s Office, ATF, Raleigh Police, Johnston County Sheriff’s Office, and Zebulon Police. Assistant U.S. Attorneys Dave Fitzgerald and Bryan Stephany prosecuted. Court records are available in Case No. 5:19-CR-00450-D via the Eastern District of North Carolina or PACER.
Related Federal Cases
- Cedrick Tyler Armstrong Convicted in High-Speed Chase, Shooting · North Carolina
- Reidsville Gunman Gets 10 Years · North Carolina
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Key Facts
- State: North Carolina
- Agency: DOJ USAO
- Category: Weapons
- Source: Official Source ↗
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