SALISBURY — A man charged with attempted murder in the shooting of a Statesville police officer is being held in the Rowan County Detention Center.

Keith Eugene Lackey, 21, was charged Tuesday in the shooting of Officer Tyler Horn, who was shot in the back after an apparent ambush on Friday, according to local media outlets.

Statesville Police Chief Joe Barone said Horn and another officer were on routine foot patrol when someone stepped out and fired multiple shots in their direction, striking Horn in the back.

The protective vest the officer was wearing took the brunt of the shots. He was taken to the hospital and was treated and released.

Lackey was initially being held in the Iredell County Detention Center under a $3 million bond but is now in the Rowan County jail on a temporary hold without bond.

“The fact that this is a dangerous job is never from the minds of our officers and their families. But we patrol and serve this community every single day,” Barone said in a statement.

He said he received a phone call that one of his officers had been shot and his heart sank.

“We are like family here, and their welfare is important to me. I can’t thank them enough for the job they do for our city,” Barone said.

Lackey is facing two counts of attempted first-degree murder, two counts of assault with a deadly weapon on a law enforcement officer, two counts of assault with a deadly weapon with intent to kill inflicting serious injury, and discharging a firearm in the city limits.