FLORENCE COUNTY, SC (WMBF) - Deputies have identified the alleged shooter who opened fire Wednesday on law enforcement officers in Florence County, killing one officer and injuring several others, according to Florence County Sheriff’s Office Chief Deputy Glenn Kirby.
Kirby identified the suspect as 74-year-old Fred Hopkins who lived at the home on Ashton Drive where the incident occurred. Hopkins suffered a head injury and was taken to a local hospital for treatment. Law enforcement officials are unable to speak with the suspect at this time due to multiple health issues, Kirby says.
Florence police officer Terrence Carraway, 52, who had just received his 30-year service pin from the department, was killed in the shooting.
According to Kirby, deputies were executing a search warrant for an unnamed person in relation to an alleged sexual assault of a minor who was a foster child in the home. Kirby confirms the alleged shooter was not the suspect they were investigating.
A 27-year-old man was also shot, and deputies say he was the suspect in the sexual assault allegation they were investigating. Five Florence County deputies were at the scene to serve the warrant. Two sex crimes investigators and one other deputy were also present, Kirby says.
According to NBC News, two of the three injured deputies were said to be in critical condition and the third, who was shot in the leg, was in stable condition.
Of the three surviving police officers, one suffered a graze wound to his head and was paralyzed on one side. Another officer was in stable condition, and a third, shot in the thumb, was released from the hospital, officials told NBC News.
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