THE SUSPECT IN a shooting at a Richmond bus terminal that wounded a trooper and two civilians has died, Virginia State Police have said.
The suspect shot the trooper and died after two other troopers returned fire. State Police spokeswoman Corinne Geller said the trooper has life-threatening injuries, while the two civilians are expected to survive.
It was not clear if the civilians had been shot. Initially, State Police had said in a news release that two troopers were taken to a hospital, but Geller later told reporters that only one had been hurt.
Broadcast images showed numerous police cars and heavily armed officers at the scene.
Brendan Hamilton told The Richmond Times-Dispatch he was about to walk into the station when he heard two loud bangs, then saw flashes of light. He told the newspaper he then heard at least five more bangs before people started to run out of the building.
Vincent Smith was working next door to the Greyhound station when he heard sirens and saw police cars buzzing by.
“The police units just poured in like a river,” Smith said. “I went to the end of the lot and there must have been 30 units just a block away.”
Smith said he saw police officers carrying shields and assault weapons. An officer came by and ordered him and his co-workers to stay inside and lock the doors until they were told it was safe again. By late afternoon, he said he had been locked inside for about an hour and a half.
City Council member Reva Trammell was at the scene of the shooting and called it “the saddest day in the city of Richmond.”
“State troopers doing their job and innocent people shot,” she added. “Why? This was a senseless act.”
Richmond Mayor Dwight Jones issued a statement saying he was being briefed on the situation. The Greyhound Bus Station is located west of the city’s downtown area, across from Richmond’s minor league baseball stadium and within a former industrial area. It is located on a main thoroughfare connecting a residential district to the stadium and nearby restaurants.
Greyhound issued a statement saying that the Richmond, Virginia, station would be “closed until further notice”.
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