Photo: Getty Images
A 15-year-old boy was identified as the suspect in the fatal shooting of five people in Raleigh, North Carolina on Thursday (October 14), police announced Friday (October 14) morning via the Associated Press.
Raleigh Police Chief Estella Patterson said the shooter opened fire on a greenway northeast of downtown before eluding officers for hours and later being contained at a house in central Raleigh.
The shooter is reported to be in critical condition, according to police.
A 16-year-old boy and an off-duty officer were among the five victims killed in the incident. Police didn't provide details on a motive during Friday's update.
"This is a sad and tragic day for the city of Raleigh," Mayor Mary-Anne Baldwin said Thursday via WRAL. “We must stop this mindless violence in America. We must address gun violence.”
A spokeswoman for WakeMed Health and Hospitals, which operates several facilities in Raleigh, confirmed that three patients were taken to their hospitals in relation to the shooting, before later confirming a fourth victim was also hospitalized.
Additional details about the hospitalized victims' conditions were not immediately made known to NBC News at the time of publication Thursday night.
WRAL reports officers searched for three hours before containing the suspect Thursday night after initially responding to an active shooter situation at around 5:30 pm.
"I heard two gunshots, and they were really loud so I knew something was close by and then I heard three other gunshots," said Robert, a witness who called 911 and refrained from giving his last name to WRAL. "I saw him basically pass my house in the backyard. He had a long barrel shotgun. He was dressed in camo. He had a full backpack on that was also camouflage."