At least 5 killed in shooting in Raleigh, North Carolina; 15-year-old suspect in custody
Five people, including an off-duty police officer, were killed, and two more wounded in a shooting Thursday evening in a residential neighborhood in Raleigh, North Carolina. A suspect, described as a 15-year-old White male, has been taken into custody and was in critical condition Friday morning, the city's police chief said.
The deceased victims were identified as Nicole Connors, 52; Susan Karnatz, 49; Mary Marshall, 34; Officer Gabriel Torres, 29; and James Roger Thompson, 16, according to police. Marshall would have turned 35 later this month.
Torres was on his way to work when he was killed, Chief Estella Patterson said during a press conference Friday.
"This is an extremely, extremely painful event for our officers, for me, for this entire community," Patterson said.
Authorities were working on charges for the suspected gunman, Patterson said, adding that the investigation into the shooting was ongoing.
A Raleigh police K-9 officer was among the two people who were wounded, Raleigh Mayor Mary-Ann Baldwin said Thursday night. Raleigh police Lt. Jason Borneo said later Thursday night that the wounded officer had been treated and released from the hospital.
The second wounded victim, a 59-year-old woman, was hospitalized in critical condition, Patterson said.
The shooting was reported just after 5 p.m. local time along the Neuse River Greenway trail in the east Raleigh neighborhood of Hedingham, Baldwin said.
The suspect was taken into custody at 9:37 p.m., Borneo said, adding that "there is no active, ongoing threat." The suspect had earlier in the night been "contained in a residence in the area" by both local and federal law enforcement, Baldwin said.
No details were provided on the circumstances of the shootings or a possible motive.
As the situation was unfolding, Raleigh police initially reported that "multiple law enforcement agencies" had responded to an "active shooting." The Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives tweeted just after 7:30 p.m. that its special agents were responding to an "active shooter scene."
Residents were advised by police "to remain in their homes," while drivers were also asked to avoid the area.
Nearby Hedingham Golf Club told CBS affiliate WNCN-TV that it closed the club and pulled all golfers off the course.
"Tonight, terror has reached our doorstep," North Carolina Gov. Roy Cooper said at a second news briefing late Thursday night. "The nightmare of every community has come to Raleigh. This is a senseless, horrific and infuriating act of violence that has been committed."
Editor's note: This story has been updated to correct the spelling of one of the victims' names.