November 27, 2007
Ty Ty -- Mike Hunt has owned Southern Tractor Sales on U-S 82 in Ty Ty for 10 years. When he heard nearby gunshots Saturday afternoon, he never imagined they were directed at his business.
"I was down in the woods cleaning some birds when I heard gunfire, which is not unusual here. When I came up here later that afternoon, that's when I saw the holes in the building up beside the door," said Hunt.
Luckily, no one was inside when the high powered rounds pierced through glass and walls. Six shots in total, one went entirely through the office and into the garage. Another shot ricocheted off a model toy tractor, but that wasn't the only tractor that was hit.
Hunt said, "When I started looking around, I found the two tractors shot up, also."
Two high powered rounds flattened a tire and blew out the cab window of a Montana Tractor. With no motive in the shooting, a guess at who was behind this, is in itself, a shot in the dark.
"Hopefully it was a prank. Hopefully they weren't just mad at me. I would guess some guy probably had a little too much to drink and decided to take a shot at something. Maybe he couldn't hit a deer so he decided to shoot a tractor," says Hunt.
While the exact location of where the shots were fired is unknown at this time, the trajectory of the bullets suggest that they were shot from a field across from busy U-S 82. Now whether the shots were fired at someone or part of a foolish prank, the damages proved to be costly.
"Tractors, building and all, we're looking at about $5,000 or $6,000 dollars total. Thank goodness I wasn't in there working. But I could've been in there working when that happened," says Hunt.
Despite the cost, the damages could've been much greater.
There is a reward for information in the case leading to a conviction. Anyone with information is asked to contact the Tift County Sheriff's Office.
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