Town manager: Ranlo officer accused of murder previously charged in school bus confrontation

RANLO, N.C. — The Ranlo town manager told Channel 9 he knew that an officer now charged with murder had a previous charge while working as a police officer in Gastonia.

It’s one of the new details Channel 9′s Ken Lemon discovered while digging into the employment history of Ranlo Police Officer Kawaku “Riley” Agyapon.

There is little reported about that charge the town manager mentioned because Officer Agyapon had the conviction expunged, which means all records about it are removed from court. But Lemon learned Ranlo town leaders knew about it when he applied for work there.

Agyapon is currently in jail for murder, but is still on unpaid leave as a Ranlo police officer pending an internal investigation. He was charged with killing a man on Jan. 1 while using his service weapon at a home a few blocks away from the town hall.

“Horrific and disappointing and a complete shock,” town manager Jonathan Blanton said.

Blanton said Agyapon had only been an officer in Ranlo for four months and had no disciplinary issues.

“We did not notice any type of red flag. No type of indication of this pattern of behavior,” Blanton said.

Blanton said he knew that back in late 2021, while Riley was a Gastonia police officer, he got on a school bus to confront someone about a bully incident. That act led to a charge and questions that were reviewed by the North Carolina Criminal Justice Education and Training Standards Commission, he said.

“At such time that he was cleared, he was sworn in as a Ranlo police officer in August of 2022,” Blanton said.

Then in November, prosecutors said Agyapon responded to a domestic violence call at a home on Burlington Avenue. Juan Avalo was the suspect.

The district attorney said Agyapon kept in contact with the accuser in that case. According to the DA, when Avalo found out, that led to Agyapon returning to the house on New Year’s Day while off duty.

Police said he was stabbed during a fight with Avalo, and said Avalo dropped the knife and ran. The DA said that was when Agyapon shot the man with his police-issued weapon from about 75 to 95 feet away.

Lemon asked if Agyapon crossed the line using resources obtained as an officer to keep in contact with the accuser.

“We are launching a very in-depth investigation -- internal investigation,” Blanton said. “We are going to follow every lead. We are going to look into every allegation.”

He said that investigation will be lengthy and could lead to changes in policy -- especially after the exchange last weekend left a bullet hole in the front of the home. Now, the hole is just above a makeshift memorial to Juan Avalo, with what appears to be handwritten messages from his children.

The town manager stressed Agyapon was not on duty when he went to that home and he should not have had his police-issued weapon with him.

That weapon was a prior concern for the town before, since Agyapon’s wife served time for second-degree murder. The town manager said Agyapon needed special provisions to keep that weapon at home with her.

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