CHARLOTTE, NC –
Law enforcement officers with a warrant demanded that a man leave a North Carolina home before four were shot to death, and the victims could not survive the gunshots coming from inside the home, a witness said Tuesday. and officials.
Still reeling from Monday’s attack, the deadliest against American law enforcement officers since 2016, investigators in Charlotte said they were unsure if there was a second shooter and that more work was needed to determine what happened.
“Charlotte will not be the last place this will happen,” said Mayor Vi Lyles, “but Charlotte will be the place that heals, that heals with dignity and respect for all.”
A task force made up of agents from different agencies had arrived in the suburban neighborhood to try to capture Terry Clark Hughes Jr., 39, who was wanted for possession of a firearm by an ex-felon and was fleeing to elude in the county. from Lincoln, to the north. Carolina.
Those killed were identified as Sam Poloche and William Elliott of the North Carolina Department of Adult Corrections; Charlotte-Mecklenburg Officer Joshua Eyer; and Deputy United States Marshal Thomas Weeks. Four other officers were wounded in the shooting and Hughes also died.
An AR-15 semi-automatic rifle, a 40 caliber pistol and ammunition were found at the scene.
An AR-15 is capable of penetrating traditional body armor and allowed the shooter to “fire multiple rounds toward our officers in a matter of seconds,” said Charlotte-Mecklenburg Police Chief Johnny Jennings.
He said more than 100 spent bullets were found, although it was unclear how many were fired by the suspect. At least 12 officers also fired shots.
This combination of undated images provided by authorities shows, from left, Sam Poloche and William Elliott of the North Carolina Department of Adult Corrections; Charlotte-Mecklenburg Officer Joshua Eyer; and Deputy United States Marshal Thomas Weeks. The four officers died on April 29, 2024 in a shootout in suburban Charlotte. (North Carolina Department of Corrections (2), Charlotte-Mecklenburg Police Department, US Marshals Service via AP)
“Although the officers were trying to take cover, they were at a disadvantage because the suspect was at a higher level and they were returning fire from a lower position,” Jennings said, noting that the gunman was “shooting from above.”
It was the deadliest day for US law enforcement in an incident since a sniper killed five officers during a protest in Dallas in 2016.
Hughes’ criminal record in North Carolina dates back more than a decade. It includes prison terms and convictions for breaking and entering, reckless driving, evading arrest and illegal possession of a weapon as a former felon, according to state records.
Saing Chhoeun, who lives next door, recalled hearing several demands for Hughes to leave the house. There was no response, she said, but then a car alarm went off about the same time as the gunshots.
An armored vehicle was later parked between the house and the wounded officers to serve as protection during a rescue attempt. After a three-hour standoff, special vehicles opened the house.
“I don’t know how many bullets were fired, but then there was silence,” Chhoeun told The Associated Press.
Two women who were inside the home, including a minor, cooperated and have not been charged, the police chief said, adding that investigators were not pursuing additional suspects.
Jennings said Monday that a second shooter was suspected of firing at police. But on Tuesday he backtracked and said that possibility was still being verified.
Before answering reporters’ questions, officials expressed their sorrow and astonishment over the killed and injured officers.
Eyer was recently honored as Charlotte-Mecklenburg Officer of the Month, in part for working to get guns off the streets. Jennings said he died while responding to other people facing gunfire at the scene.
“We saw…officers stepping into the line of fire to save their brothers in blue, who fell in the act of trying to keep our community safe,” Jennings said. “To me, that’s truly heroic.”
Residents of the neighborhood of modest brick houses expressed their fear a day later.
“We’ve been here for so long, you raise your kids here, and all of a sudden this tragedy happens,” said Yearly Washington, who has lived there for 35 years.
The last marshal killed in the line of duty was in November 2018. Chase White was shot in Tucson, Arizona, by a man wanted for stalking local authorities.
The Carolinas Regional Fugitive Task Force, headquartered in Charlotte, is comprised of 70 federal, state and local agencies that collaborate to capture criminal suspects.
“This is a loss for the entire country,” said Marshals Service Director Ronald Davis, who traveled to Charlotte. “Losing a deputy, losing task force officers, it’s like losing a family member because, frankly, they’re family members.”
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Contributing to this report were John Raby and Leah Willingham in Charleston, West Virginia; Sarah Brumfield in Silver Spring, Maryland; and Ed White in Detroit.