SALISBURY, NC (FOX 46 CHARLOTTE) – A Salisbury police officer who is accused of an assault on a female and a male, and breaking and entering turned himself in on Sunday, according to the Rowan County Sherriff’s Office.
Malik Byrd, 23, faces multiple charges including assault on a female, breaking and entering with intent to injure, and interfering with a 911 call on Saturday night. Another suspect in the incident, Kiante Cotton still hasn’t been arrested.
Byrd, who joined the force in 2018, has been placed on administrative leave pending the inquiry into an incident that occurred on Saturday.
Deputies responded to the incident around 11:30 p.m. on Saturday at 360 Wilcoy Road in Rockwell, N.C. where the woman who owned the residence said Byrd left the scene along with his cousin, Kiante Cotton, who was also a suspect.
The owner of the home said Byrd arrived outside the residence that night and wanted to talk to her but she could tell he had been drinking.
She says Byrd became agitated when she would not tell him who else was inside the home and he made a movement towards the door, leading her to say she was going to call 911. That’s when Byrd grabbed her arm, took her phone and told her she wasn’t going to call the police.
Byrd kept her cellphone and forcefully shoved her out the doorway as he and his cousin entered the residence and confronted a man.
The woman said Byrd began punching and striking the man in the face, shoulders and back before Cotton did the same.
The two left the scene after the woman ran outside screaming for help.
Byrd turned himself in around 10 a.m. on Sunday and was placed in the Rowan County Detention Center under no bond pending a court hearing. Cotton, a 23-year-old Black male of 801 E. Woodcroft Parkway in Durham is still being searched for along with the help of Durham Police.
Earlier this month Salisbury Police came under scrutiny for a video that surfaced of an aggressive exchange between a K-9 officer and a dog during what appeared to be a training session.
“Officer Byrd’s recent arrest and a previous incident involving another officer are two isolated incidents which in no way reflects the character of the men and women of the Salisbury Police Department,” the department said in a news release.
Salisbury PD has 80 employees.
