Cleveland woman shot with paintball gun while driving demands answers

From Local 3 News: A Cleveland woman is speaking out after she was shot with a paintball gun while driving on a local highway, leaving her injured and her car damaged.

Bionca Ross recounted the frightening moment from Saturday, April 5, during an exclusive interview with Local 3 News.

Ross is now calling for justice and has vowed to hold the individuals responsible accountable.

Ross was driving when she was struck in the chest by what she initially believed was a bullet. The sudden impact left her in shock, and she immediately froze.

"My first reaction was to do this, and all I felt was wet,” Ross said. "In that moment, it hurt so bad I literally thought I was struck with an actual bullet.”

Despite the initial panic, Ross quickly realized it was a paintball and not a real bullet. However, the realization that it was a prank didn’t ease her distress. Instead, it turned into anger.

“I heard and felt the impact," she said. "Everything happened so fast, and at that point, I'm like, 'I'm at River Point Road, so I turned around, and I floored it.’”

Ross decided to chase the vehicle she believed was responsible, hoping to confront those behind the reckless act. As she pursued them, she recorded the incident on her phone and made a note of the vehicle's tag number.

“I know for sure there was a driver and passenger, and there was someone in the middle seat," Ross recalled. "My personal theory is that these kids, because it looked like kids in the car, had skipped prom or left prom early – somebody from out of town – and they were looking to have some fun.”

After trying to track down the vehicle, Ross learned that the license plate was registered outside of Louis County, near Nashville. She reported the incident to the Bradley County Sheriff’s Office, which confirmed that an investigation is underway.

Though Ross understands that some might see paintball pranks as harmless fun, she stressed the dangers involved.

“This is just not okay, and it could have ended so fatal,” she said.

Ross is determined to hold the perpetrators accountable. If they don’t come forward on their own, she says she will pursue charges.

“I’m incredibly grateful it wasn’t worse, but I refuse to let this go,” she said. "This could have been much more dangerous, and that’s why I’m speaking out.”

The investigation into the incident is ongoing, and authorities are working to identify the individuals involved.