ASHEVILLE, N.C. (828newsNOW) — Using drone technology, Asheville Police Department officers and Macho, a K9 officer, apprehended a man who assaulted a Biltmore Village homeowner with a firearm during an attempted break-in.
APD officers were investigating a report of a person with a gun around 1:14 a.m., June 14, on Warren Avenue. Upon arrival, officers learned that Matthew John Kinsella, 37, was confronted by a homeowner after Kinsella attempted to break into the residence.
Kinsella struck the homeowner with the butt of a shotgun before fleeing into a nearby wooded area. APD officers located Kinsella hiding under thick brush using drone technology and instructed him to surrender.
When Kinsella refused, K9 Macho led officers to Kinsella’s precise location, where he was taken into custody. The shotgun used during the break-in was located nearby.
“Without the use of the drone to locate the subject, the officers’ safety would have been at much greater risk,” wrote APD Public Information Officer Rick Rice in a press release. “The technology prevented this incident from escalating, and the potential for serious injury to officers and the subject was avoided. We are grateful to the council and city management for their support in our use of this technology to keep our citizens safe.”
Kinsella was charged with:
- One felony charge for assault with a deadly weapon serious injury
- Three misdemeanor charges for assault by pointing gun
- One misdemeanor charge for second degree trespass
- One misdemeanor charge for breaking & entering
- One misdemeanor charge for resisting public officer
- One misdemeanor charge for going armed to the terror of people
- One misdemeanor charge for communicating threats
Kinsella was booked into the Buncombe County Detention Facility under a $70,000 secured bond issued by a magistrate.
If you have any information about this incident, please contact the APD at (828) 252-1110. You can also send an anonymous tip using the TIP2APD app or by texting “TIP2APD” to 847411.