4 officers killed in North Carolina were at disadvantage as shots rained from above, police say

Charlotte, N.C. — Four law enforcement officers in North Carolina who were killed while trying to capture a man immediately faced gunfire as they approached, unable to withstand shots from upstairs in a house, authorities said Tuesday.

Still reeling from Monday's attack — the deadliest against U.S. law enforcement officers since 2016 — investigators in Charlotte said they weren't sure whether there was a second shooter and that more work was needed to determine what happened.

“Charlotte isn’t going to be the last place that this happens,” Mayor Vi Lyles said, “but Charlotte will be the place that will heal, that will heal with dignity and respect for everyone.”

A task force was trying to capture Terry Clark Hughes Jr., 39, who was wanted for possession of a firearm by an ex-felon and fleeing to elude in Lincoln County, 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 U.S. Marshal Thomas Weeks. Four other officers were wounded, and Hughes was also killed.

An AR-15 automatic rifle, a 40-caliber handgun and ammunition were found at the scene.

An AR-15 is able to penetrate traditional body armor and allowed the shooter to “unload several rounds towards our officers within a matter of seconds,” said Charlotte-Mecklenburg Police Chief Johnny Jennings.

More than 100 spent rounds were found, he said, though it wasn't clear how many of those were fired by the suspect. At least 12 officers also fired their weapons.

“Even though officers were trying to take cover, they were at a disadvantage because the suspect was up at a higher level and they were returning to return fire from a lower position,” Jennings said. When officers arrived, the suspect "was shooting from upstairs down at the officers,” he said.

It was the deadliest day for U.S. law enforcement in one incident since five officers were killed by a sniper during a protest in Dallas in 2016.

Two females who were inside the residence were cooperating and investigators weren't pursuing any additional suspects, Jennings said. They have not been charged.

Jennings said Monday that a second shooter was suspected of firing at police. But by Tuesday, he wasn't as firm and said that possibility was still being investigated.

After a three-hour standoff, the home was torn open. Armored vehicles smashed into it, ripping off windows and entire doorways that were left broken. Several armored vehicles were parked across yards, some with tree branches dangling off them.

Before taking questions from reporters Tuesday, officials expressed sorrow and awe for the slain and wounded officers.

“We saw … officers going in to the line of fire to save their brothers in blue, who have gone down in the act of trying to keep our community safe,” Jennings said. “To me, that’s truly heroic."

Neighbors said gunfire lasted for several minutes.

WSOC-TV said their helicopter captured an armored vehicle driving through yards and knocking over recycling bins before officers removed a person with blood on their shirt who was then loaded into an ambulance.

After the home was cleared, the helicopter pilot said he couldn't show the front lawn of the home because the scene was too graphic and disturbing.

Rissa Reign was cleaning her house when she heard the first shots ring out. There was a pause, then a second set of shots and then a third. She stepped outside.

“When we came outside, there were no cops at all, then cops started rushing, rushing, rushing, rushing in,” she said, adding armored SWAT trucks quickly followed and they "were going over the grass, everything, and they started shooting again.”

The neighborhood, of one– and two-story, brick homes and small trimmed lawns, is very safe, said Alex Rivera, who lives on a street nearby.

“I see, like, 50 police cars zooming in, and then I hear gunshots,” he said on the front porch of the house he shares with his cousin. “I was scared, because there was so much going on.“

The last marshal shot and killed in the line of duty was in November 2018. Chase White was shot in Tucson, Arizona, by a man wanted for stalking local law enforcement officers, the agency said.

The Carolinas Regional Fugitive Task Force is headquartered in Charlotte and comprised of 70 federal, state and local agencies. Fugitive task forces are collaborations between agencies to find and arrest suspects in crimes.

Contributing to this report were Sarah Brumfield in Silver Spring, Maryland; Leah Willingham in Charleston, West Virginia; and Ed White in Detroit.