Man Assaulted with a Baseball Bat

On 06/01/2023 at 07:45 Morganton Public Safety was dispatched to 541 Lenoir Road in reference to an assault with a baseball bat.  Dispatch advised officers that the offender (Robert Keith Ross) had left the area in a white Chevrolet Astro van.  Once on scene, PSO Stotts located the victim at a camp site under the twin bridges on Highway 18 North.  The victim reported that he had been struck in the head with an aluminum bat by Robert Ross.  Burke County EMS transported the victim to UNC Health Blue Ridge.  It appeared that he had been struck in the head at least six times.

Officer Stotts located the Astro van a few hours later at Roses parking lot in Morganton and conducted a felony vehicle stop on West Fleming Drive.  Ross was taken into custody and charged with Assault with a Deadly Weapon Inflicting Serious Bodily Injury.  He is being held in the Burke County Jail under a $50,000.00 bond.  Ross is scheduled to have his first appearance in court on 06/02/2023.