Five people are dead, including a police officer, after an hours-long shooting Thursday in a residential area of Raleigh, North Carolina, officials said.
Among the dead was an unidentified off-duty Raleigh Police Department officer, Mayor Mary-Ann Baldwin said at a press conference late Thursday. About an hour after police said they had a suspect in a residence in the area, the Raleigh Police Department sent out a letter that they had a suspect.
A Raleigh officer was among several injured in the incident, Baldwin said. He said the officer, a K9 officer, was not seriously injured but said the condition of the other victims was unknown. The number of casualties was unclear.
“All of us in Raleigh right now need to get together,” Baldwin said. “We need to support those in our community who have lost a lot, lost a loved one.”
North Carolina Governor Roy Cooper said multiple law enforcement agencies are responding to the incident. The Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, and Firearms in Charlotte said special agents were also responding.
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“State and local police are on the ground and working to stop the shooter and keep people safe,” Cooper said.
Police blocked off several roads in the area, and many law enforcement vehicles could be seen parked in the streets and driveways of two-story houses. The community borders the Neuse River Greenway Trail, about nine miles northeast of downtown Raleigh.
At least three people involved in the shooting were being treated Thursday night at WakeMed Hospital in Raleigh, but no further information was immediately available, hospital spokeswoman Deb Laughery said.
Distribution: The Associated Press