Police shot and killed an 18-year-old man Thursday as hundreds of Christmas Eve shoppers hid and were evacuated from a suburban Charlotte, North Carolina, mall, authorities said, NBC News reported.
An off-duty Charlotte-Mecklenburg County police officer working security at Northlake Mall, about 8 miles north of downtown Charlotte, responded to gunfire during an altercation among "a group of subjects who have a history of feuding" about 2 p.m. ET, Police Chief Kerr Putney said early Thursday evening.
The officer, identified as Thomas Ferguson, discovered that two people were armed, Putney said. When one of the people pointed a weapon, the officer opened fire, he said. The man, identified as Daquan Antonio Westbrook, was pronounced dead a short time later.
It hadn't been determined whether Westbrook fired back at police, Putney said.
The Mecklenburg Emergency Medical Services Agency said it treated one patient with a leg injury, one patient with an asthma attack and one patient in labor. Novant Health Medical Center in Huntersville told NBC News it treated four people who walked in with injuries related to the incident. It would give no further details.
