A Rutherford County deputy was airlifted to a hospital after he was shot early Thursday morning, according to the sheriff's office. The deputy is expected to make a full recovery.
The shooting happened at about 3 a.m., the sheriff's office said. Officials said it was connected to a search for a suspect wanted in connection with a shooting in Virginia. The suspect died in the shooting, the sheriff's office said.
The Rutherford County Sheriff's Office sent out an alert Wednesday about a manhunt for Tiye Washington, 26. Officials said Washington may have fled to Rutherford County after a shooting outside Richmond, Virginia, and was considered "armed and dangerous."
The sheriff's office said they found Washington near the intersection of Old Henrietta Road and Providence Road Thursday morning.
"During an exchange of gunfire, a Rutherford County Sheriff’s Deputy was injured, and Washington sustained injuries and was pronounced deceased at the scene," the sheriff's office said.
Washington is wanted in Henrico County, Virginia, which includes the suburbs north and east around Richmond.
According to Henrico County Police, Washington is connected to a Tuesday night shooting that left two adult women and one juvenile male injured.
The Rutherford County Sheriff's Office said the North Carolina State Bureau of Investigation and the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives were involved in the search. Several schools in the county were under a "soft lock-down" Wednesday because of the ongoing search.
Rutherford County is in the North Carolina mountains southeast of Asheville.