By Tim Gardner
An off-duty Avery County Sheriff’s Detention Officer has been accused of fatally shooting one of his neighbors following an altercation this past weekend.
At approximately 7:50 p.m. on Saturday September 30, Avery County Sheriff’s Deputies responded to a call at 289 Teaster Valley Lane in Banner Elk in reference to a physical altercation between two male individuals.
Deputies found both individuals there, who were identified as Brenden James Smith and Michael Andrew Houser, both of Banner Elk.
According to a press release by Avery County Sheriff Mike Henley, Houser had sustained a single gunshot wound and was pronounced dead a short time after deputies arrived.
Smith, who remained on scene, is a Detention Officer. Sheriff Henley said that due to the involvement of a Sheriff’s Office employee, the ongoing investigation of the incident is being conducted by the North Carolina State Bureau of Investigation (NCSBI).
Sheriff Henley added that Smith has been placed on administrative leave from the Avery County Sheriff’s Office and Detention Center pending the outcome of the investigation and that all further inquiries about it should be directed to the NCSBI.
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