Man killed by shots fired through his front door, NC cops say. Gunman convicted

A man deemed a “violent habitual felon” by law enforcement is headed to prison for taking part in an early morning robbery that turned deadly, according to prosecutors in North Carolina.

Michael Christopher Thompson was accused of firing multiple shots through the front door of a Winston-Salem home, killing 57-year-old Ray Anthony Pruitt, District Attorney James R. O’Neill said in a Dec. 15 news release.

A week-long trial concluded with Thompson being found guilty of first degree murder, robbery with a dangerous weapon, first degree burglary, six counts of discharging a firearm into an occupied dwelling, and possession of a fire arm by a felon, O’Neill said.

Thompson, 50, was sentenced to two consecutive life sentences without the possibility of parole: “One for first degree murder and the other for having attained the status of a violent habitual felon,” O’Neill said.

The killing happened around 2:30 a.m. on Feb. 4, 2022, when Thompson and two other people tried to rob one of his neighbors on Weatherwood Court in Winston-Salem, investigators said.

“Officers found the victim, Ray Anthony Pruitt, deceased in his apartment. The victim ... had been shot once through his front door,” prosecutors said.

“On the night of the robbery, the defendant tried to enter Mr. Pruitt’s apartment through the front door. After a brief struggle, the defendant fired a handgun into the apartment, through the door six times.”

Thompson and his partners then entered the victim’s home and stole some of his belongings, officials said.

Among the people who testified at the trial were Thompson’s two co-defendants, who identified Thompson as the person who fired shots through the door, prosecutors said.

Thompson’s attorney, Jerry Jordan, said an appeal of the verdict is planned.

Winston-Salem is abut an 80-mile drive northeast from Charlotte.

This story was originally published December 17, 2025 at 9:24 AM.