POLICE IN THE US capital Washington DC have said a man was killed and five other adults were wounded in a shooting last night.

The incident occurred in the courtyard of an apartment complex near Columbia Heights Metro Station.

Metropolitan police were searching for two men armed with a rifle seen at the shooting, which occurred in a largely residential part of the north-west Washington neighbourhood at around 10pm (3am Irish time), just off a busy commercial street.

Police said five victims in the Columbia Heights shooting were men and one was a woman.

Commander Stuart Emerson said the injuries ranged from “non critical to critical”, and all were receiving treatment in a local hospital.

Three others were wounded in another shooting in north-east Washington, although police don’t know if the two shootings were related, The Washington Post reported.

In that shooting, two men and a woman were wounded, but an update on their conditions was not available early today.