Armed Man Dead After Officer-Involved Shooting at North Carolina Mall

A long-standing dispute sparked a shooting at a crowded North Carolina shopping mall on Christmas Eve, police said, and an off-duty officer fatally shot a man who pointed a gun in his direction.

According to police, an armed suspect was shot and pronounced dead on scene by Medic.

No officers were injured, police said in a statement at midafternoon.

The shooting happened inside the Northlake Mall. They also are investigating whether the people involved are connected with a recent spate of shootings in the city.

Police set up a incident command centre and there were reports that one person had a leg injury, another had an asthma attack and another person was in labour.

Dawson said the suspect appeared to have been hit twice by the police officer. Witnesses describe shoppers running out of stores screaming.

Some employees of stores inside the mall began pulling down their gates upon hearing the fired shots in order to protect those inside, while others left the mall.

Posts on social media showed shoppers evacuating the mall and police arriving at the scene. He said he heard pops that sounded like gunfire.

The scene was chaotic, she said: People ran to their cars.

In the same store, Lisa Sawyer Phillips, 46, and her 26-year-old son were looking for Carolina Panthers T-shirts when they heard the shots.

The officer then “fired his service weapon”, Putney said.

Chief Putney says the officer was placed on administrative leave pending the outcome of an investigation.