Elderly Couple Shaken After Shots Fired Into Their Home In Raleigh

An elderly Raleigh couple is counting their blessings after someone shot dozens of times into their house – a place they’ve called home for 51 years.

It happened around 11:00 p.m. Wednesday night in the Twin Lakes subdivision, off Raleigh-Millington Road.

Investigators found more than 35 shell casings from three separate guns. The damage left behind included bullet holes, shattered glass, and rattled nerves.

Investigators say the elderly couple probably was not the intended target. 

“It sounded like a bomb went off.” A flurry of gunfire jolted Joseph Ontl and his wife Mary from their sleep. “Shook every wall in the house, set every alarm off in the house.”

The married couple of 54 years remained rattled hours after police said shooters with three different guns unloaded on their home, and drove off. The bullets went through the brick home, going through a freezer, kitchen wall, even a portable thermostat.

“A few individuals, that have no concern about human life or property or somebody else’s feelings,” says Ontl.

Of the 37 bullets fired, the one that enraged the 75-year-old retiree the most damaged shutter just feet from where his wife slept.

“That one concerned me,” says Ontl. “You go out there and there’s four or five holes.”

Even worse, Ontl said this is the first such brazen act of violence he’s experienced in his more than five decades on this street raising a family. 

“The first time, that it’s been this stinking violent, it’s got a lot to do with how things are going,” says Ontl.

The street where this happened will soon get eight security cameras thanks to a grant and private donations.

The person responsible for installing those cameras told Local 24 the news of this shooting left him heartbroken and infuriated.

There’s no suspect information available. Anyone who may know something about this case can call Crime Stoppers at 901-528-CASH.