A state trooper was involved in a fatal shooting Sunday morning. It happened around 2:15 AM. The trooper had responded to a call for assistance by the Lenoir County Sheriff’s Office following a shooting that had occurred at Club Aries located near the intersection of Suttontown Road and Poole Road.
As the trooper exited his patrol car and was approaching the scene, he reportedly encountered two males running towards him. The trooper saw that one of the individuals had a gun.
According to a Highway Patrol spokesperson, the man with the gun failed to comply with the trooper’s commands to stop and drop the weapon. Instead, the male pointed the weapon directly at the trooper who fired, fatally striking the individual. The second person was taken into custody without incident.
Two weapons were recovered from the scene.
The State Bureau of Investigation is investigating the officer involved shooting.
“This type of incident is a reminder of the serious and dangerous situations our troopers face every single day,” North Carolina State Highway Patrol Colonel William Grey said. “We are saddened by the loss of life but grateful that our trooper is safe”
The trooper is a six year veteran assigned to the Troop A District 7 Kinston Highway Patrol office located in Lenoir County. He has been placed on Administrative Duty pending an internal investigation which is standard operating procedure in all trooper involved shootings.
