A chaotic scene in Charlotte, North Carolina yesterday ended with four law enforcement officers dead. Just before 2 pm, officers were trying to serve a warrant on a fugitive reportedly wanted on multiple charges when the suspect opened fire from inside a home. After three hours and over a hundred rounds of ammunition fired, three US Marshal task force officers and a Charlotte-Mecklenburg police officer had been killed. In total, eight officers were shot during the incident.
When police were finally able to clear the home, they found two 17-year-old females inside who were taken to the police station as persons of interest. The suspect, 39-year-old Terry Clark Hughes, was found dead in the front yard of the home, which belonged to a relative. According to Charlotte-Mecklenburg Police Chief Johnny Jennings, police believe two people were firing at officers from inside the home.
The officers killed, in addition to a deputy US Marshal who hadn’t been identified as of last night, included:
- Department of Adult Correction officer Samuel Poloche, survived by a wife and two children
- Department of Adult Correction officer William “Alden” Elliot, survived by a wife and a child
- CMPD Officer Joshua Eyer, who was just named the “Officer of the Month” for April and is survived by a wife and a three-year-old son
A GoFundMe has been started to help the families of the slain officers.