FLORENCE, S.C. -- A Vietnam veteran who bragged online about maintaining his target-shooting skills was being held Thursday in the shooting of seven law enforcement officers, one of whom died, as deputies tried to serve a search warrant at his home.
- 7 officers were shot, one fatally
- The officer killed was Terrence Carraway of Darlington, S.C.
- The shooting happened as officers were serving a warrant.
Authorities said 74-year-old Frederick Hopkins opened fire on the deputies from inside the home and held children hostage while shooting long-range at other officers who rushed to the suburban neighborhood.
Records show Hopkins, 74, is a disabled Vietnam veteran and disbarred lawyer who has faced several charges in recent years, starting with a 2014 count of disorderly conduct.
Authorities have not described what weapons were involved, but Hopkins apparently owned several guns, including an M-14 rifle. A 2014 post on his Facebook page said he celebrated his 70th birthday at a shooting range by repeatedly firing his M-14, set up exactly like the one he used in Vietnam.
Richland County announced on Thursday they are taking over the investigation. Sheriff Leon Lott says their department has experience with cases similar to this one and that it is a large crime scene to investigate. He says they are treating the incident as a homicide which is why the South Carolina Law Enforcement Division is not leading the investigation.
Authorities said the shootings happened in Vintage Place, an upscale neighborhood in the western part of the city.
Officer Terrence Carraway of Darlington, S.C. was the officer killed in the line of duty. He just celebrated 30 years as a police officer in the city.
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In a news conference on Thursday afternoon, officials said that two officers were released from the hospital with non life-threatening injuries and one remains in the hospital in serious, but stable condition.
Allen Heidler, the Florence police chief, called the shooting "the most tragic event in the 45 years I've been with the department."
Major Mike Nunn, with the Florence County Sheriff's Department, said officers were serving a warrant when the suspect began shooting, wounding three deputies. The deputies had to be removed using a bulletproof vehicle.
Then, four Florence police officers were shot while trying to respond to the initial gunfire, said Heilder. Carraway was one of Heidler's officers who was killed during the confrontation.
"I want you to pray for the family who lost the bravest police officer I have ever known," Heidler said of Carraway, visibly overcome by emotion at the news conference.
Florence, a city in South Carolina's northeastern corner home to roughly 37,000, sits at the convergence of Interstates 95 and 20. It's the largest city in the region known as the Pee Dee, an area recently affected by heavy flooding in the wake of Hurricane Florence.