5 dead and one suspect in custody, Raleigh shooting record 2:19
(CNN) — A 15-year-old suspect is in custody after a mass shooting in Raleigh on Thursday killed five and injured at least two others in what the North Carolina governor called a “moment of unspeakable agony.”
One of the victims who died was an off-duty Raleigh police officer, Gabriel Torres, 29, on his way to work, authorities said.
Officials offered few details about what happened but said the crime scene extended more than 2 miles through neighborhood streets. The shooting ended after a lengthy altercation in which the attacker was seriously injured.
The other victims who lost their lives were identified as Nicole Conners, 52; Susan Karnatz, 49; Maria Mariscal, 35, and James Roger Thompson, 16.
Hear the chilling calls to 911 from witnesses to the Raleigh shooting 1:27
A police officer injured in the shooting has been discharged from hospital while the other injured person, Marcille Lynn Gardner, 59, is in critical condition, according to Raleigh Police Sheriff Estella D. Patterson.
“My heart is heavy as we have no answers as to why this tragedy happened,” Patterson said.
For his part, Gov. Roy Cooper said at a news conference on Friday that the shooting was “an upsetting and tragic act of gun violence.”
“It was a complex mission to stop the attacker in a very short time,” Cooper said, praising the police response.
“We are sad, we are angry and we want to know the answers to all questions,” he added, “these questions will be resolved. Some today and more of them over time. But I think we all know the core truth: no neighborhood, no parent, no child, no grandparent, no one should feel that fear in their communities,” he continued.
What we know about the suspect
Raleigh Police Spokesman Lt. Jason Borneo, identified the suspected shooter as a young white man. Police have not released any further details about him.
Hours earlier, Chief Patterson reported that “a 15-year-old male suspect, white, has been taken into custody and is in critical condition,” she said.
The suspect was taken to a hospital after his arrest, CNN affiliate WRAL-TV reported. The authorities did not provide information on the extent of the suspect’s injuries. CNN has reached out to the hospital for more information.
The shooting sparked an hour-long manhunt.
The shooting began just after 5 p.m. in the Hedingham neighborhood near the Neuse River Greenway, authorities said. Then an intense pursuit by the authorities began to try to arrest the suspect.
Police tweeted just before 6 p.m. that their officers were “at the scene of an active shooting in the Neuse River Greenway area and near Osprey Cove Drive and Bay Harbor Drive.” Residents were then asked to stay at home “until further notice”.
Authorities “countered” the suspected gunman around 8 p.m. at an area apartment building, Raleigh Mayor Mary-Ann Baldwin told reporters Thursday.
Aerial footage from WRAL-TV showed more than a dozen emergency vehicles lined up on a road through a wooded area.
A woman who was on the driving range at Hedingham Golf Club said an “endless stream of police officers” had swept through the area.
“A professional golfer came out to tell us to take shelter inside or get out asap,” he told CNN. “They were very calm, but I could tell something was wrong, so we left immediately.”
The suspect was arrested before 9:40 p.m. Thursday, police said.
Baldwin expressed frustration at the harrowing gun violence that has infiltrated his city at a press conference with other officials.
“Today was a very difficult day in our city. We prayed that nothing like this would ever happen here. It happened,” Baldwin said.
Police responded to a shooting in the city of Raleigh, North Carolina.
The mayor stressed that widespread gun violence must be stopped. “We have a lot to do, but there are too many victims,” he said.
“We have to wake up. I don’t want other mayors standing here on the podium heartbroken because people in their community have died needlessly and tragically.”
There have been at least 531 mass shootings in the United States so far this year, including the one in Raleigh on Thursday, according to the Gun Violence Archive. The organization, like CNN, defines a mass shooting as one in which at least four people are shot dead, not counting the shooter.
Governor Cooper echoed the mayor’s words and asked for prayers for the victims and the community.
“Terror reached our door tonight. Every community’s nightmare has come to Raleigh,” Cooper said. “This is a senseless, appalling and infuriating act of violence that has been committed.”
Both Cooper and Baldwin praised multiple agencies’ response to the shooting. Cooper said officers ran toward “an attacker who was ready to kill people.”