PRICHARD, WV (LOOTPRESS) – A Wayne County man got more than he bargained for Monday upon finding himself being held at gunpoint after rummaging through the property of neighborhood residents.
Reports from the WV Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation confirm the Monday, October 3, 2022 arrest of Roy D. Ward on the charge of Attempt to Commit a Felony.
Ward also faces traffic charges on warrants which were active at the time of detainment. These charges include Driving Revoked for DUI, No Insurance, and Improper Registration.
According to residents of the Prichard area, Ward could be seen rifling through parked cars and attempting to gain entry through unattended doors throughout the neighborhood.
It was at this point retired high school teacher and local political candidate Mark Ross was made aware of Ward’s presence in the area, eliciting concern for the safety of his wife and grandchildren who were also in the area at the time.
Ross, who will be running unopposed in the November General Election for the West Virginia House of Delegates District 28, was alerted that an individual had been attempting to gain entry into his daughter’s home.
“I grabbed my pistol and walked up there,” Ross tells LOOTPRESS. “I checked everything out around the house and didn’t see anything. Then I walked around behind the pool and heard some major thrashing from the basement door.”
It was there Ross discovered the individual in question.
“I told him to hit the ground,” the Republican candidate says. “He obliged.”
Once the perpetrator was subdued, Ross contacted dispatch, remaining on the line during the intervening half hour prior to the arrival of Wayne County law enforcement.
“Our police officers, I appreciate them, they were great, they were wonderful,” he says. “They told me I did everything correctly and that I did what needed to be done. It’s not their fault they were out in the other part of the county on calls.”
When it comes to his community, Ross is adamant about the protection of it and the residents within it against negative outside influences.
“I’ve said it before, I’ll say it again: I for one am not going to allow drugs and thugs to take over our community,” he asserts.
“Because my grandbabies are in that community, there’s good people in our community, and these people aren’t going to come in and take over as long as I’ve got any power left in me to try to help defend it.”
Ross stands to sustain an easy victory in the upcoming General Election in which he will run unopposed as the Republican candidate for the West Virginia House of Delegates District 28.
“My competition was definitely in the Spring,” Ross says, referring to the tightly contested Wayne County Primary Race for the Republican nomination in which the initial result was split by a single vote at 687 to 688 in Ross’ favor.
A canvas by the Wayne County Commission determined that Ross had indeed pulled out that victory over Republican incumbent Josh Booth, who expressed disappointment at lack of voter participation, telling LOOTPRESS, “It’s unfortunate to have such low voter turnout.”
As for Ross, the candidate maintains pride in leading a grassroots campaign with a central focus on community rather than funding.
“Campaign finance has always been a big issue in the State of West Virginia and especially in our county,” Ross says. “We’ve always kind of thought, ‘the guy with the most money is the one that usually wins the race.’ That’s kind of the way it’s been, historically.
But if you look on the Secretary of State’s website and compare our finances in that primary race, my opponent spent $50,000 and I spent $1,600.”
Additional LOOTPRESS coverage of Wayne County activity can be found here.