Authorities: Man killed after trying to take deputy’s gun

FAYETTEVILLE, N.C. — A North Carolina police officer who happened to be at a hospital for an investigation intervened in a struggle Wednesday between a deputy and a suspect who was trying to take his gun. The suspect was killed and the deputy was injured, authorities said.

A deputy had taken the suspect to Cape Fear Valley Medical Center for medical attention, Cumberland County Sheriff Ennis Wright said at a news conference Wednesday. While there, the suspect tried to take the deputy’s gun, Wright said.

“Luckily, one of the Fayetteville PD’s officers was there to help subdue the subject,” Wright said.

The Fayetteville Police Department said in a tweet that the officer “ran to assist the deputy.” The officer was at the hospital for another investigation, police Chief Gina Hawkins said.

The suspect, who had been arrested Tuesday night on charges involving a home invasion, was killed, authorities said, while the deputy suffered non-life-threatening injuries. Wright described the deputy as being in good condition.

The struggle began about 8:20 a.m. Wednesday in the emergency department, Hawkins said.

The State Bureau of Investigation will handle the investigation since the suspect was killed in an officer-involved shooting, Hawkins said. Authorities have not released the names of the officer, deputy or suspect.