A police officer on his way to work. A 16-year-old student. Thursday evening, a teenager armed with a long gun killed five people and injured two more in east Raleigh, according to police.
A 59-year-old woman, set to turn 60 on Saturday, is in critical condition.
The first 911 calls came in starting around 5 p.m. from Raleigh's Hedingham neighborhood, a suburban area off New Bern Avenue that backs up to the Neuse River. Police said the crime scene was spread over two miles.
The mass shooting began in the neighborhood, where two people were killed, according to police. The teenage gunman then moved to the Neuse River Greenway, where he killed three more, police said.
After and hourslong manhunt, police said they cornered the suspect in a house in the neighborhood at about 8 p.m. Police said they arrested the teen just after 9:30 p.m. Thursday. The suspect was taken to a hospital where he is in critical condition.
"There are some in our community waking up without their loved ones," Raleigh Mayor Mary-Ann Baldwin said Friday morning. "No one can imagine what they are all going through."
Here are the names of the five people killed Thursday:
- Officer Gabriel Torres, 29
- James Thompson, 16
- Nicole Connors, 52
- Mary Marshall, 35
- Susan Karnatz, 49
Thompson was a junior at Knightdale High School, according to Wake County Public School System officials.
A second Raleigh police officer, Casey Clark, 33, was injured Thursday but was released from the hospital that night. Marcille Gardner, 59, remains in the hospital in critical condition.
Raleigh Police Chief Estella Patterson said investigators don't yet know why the teenager went on a rampage.
"Tonight, terror has reached our doorstep," Gov. Roy Cooper said Thursday night, joining Raleigh to update the public. "The nightmare of every community has come to Raleigh."
Knightdale High School officials say they will have counseling and staff available on campus to support any student or staff member who needs assistance.
Spectrum News 1 is working to learn more about the victims in Thursday's massacre and what happened that evening.
This article has been updated to correct the spelling of Nicole Connors' name.