Greensboro police officer shot dead

GREENSBORO, N.C. (WNCN) — Two suspects were captured Saturday night after a Blue Alert was issued in North Carolina following the deadly shooting of a Greensboro police officer at a gas station just outside Greensboro in Colfax, officials and reports said.

The Greensboro Police Department first issued a report of an incident around 4:45 p.m. at the Sheetz at 3202 Sandy Ridge Road, just west of Greensboro.

By 5:30 p.m., police asked drivers and the public to avoid the Sheetz, where Guilford County EMS confirmed with WGHP that there had been a shooting with serious injuries.

WGHP photo
Just before 8:55 p.m., North Carolina Gov. Roy Cooper reported that a Greensboro police officer was killed at the Sheetz, which is just off Interstate 40. There has been no official word from Greensboro police.

“Our prayers are with the Greensboro police and family and loved ones. Every effort must be made to apprehend those responsible and bring justice in this tragic situation,” Cooper said in a statement.

At 6:10 p.m., a North Carolina Blue Alert was issued for two men in a black Chevrolet Equinox, which fled the Sheetz heading west on I-40. The alert was linked to an “assault on law enforcement,” WGHP reported.

The Blue Alert was canceled about 100 minutes later at 7:50 p.m. Reports a few minutes before the cancellation said two men were captured with the Chevrolet in Winston-Salem.

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A Blue Alert is typically issued when a law enforcement officer is killed or is seriously injured OR when a law enforcement agency determines that the suspect poses a threat to the public and other law enforcement personnel.

As of 6:51 p.m., police in Greensboro were still asking drivers to stay clear of the Sheetz along Sandy Ridge Road.