FAYETTEVILLE, N.C. — The North Carolina State Bureau of Investigation said Monday that its agents have been asked to look into a fatal shooting involving an off-duty sheriff’s deputy that sparked a local protest.
According to a news release, Fayetteville police Chief Gina Hawkins and the Cumberland County district attorney asked the NCSBI to conduct the investigation into the Saturday shooting.
A North Carolina deputy was placed on administrative leave Monday pending an internal investigation after a fatal shooting that sparked a local protest, the Cumberland County Sheriff’s Office said Monday. Deputy Jeffrey Hash has been with the sheriff’s office since 2005.
Police in Fayetteville said a preliminary investigation determined Jason Walker, 37, “ran into traffic and jumped on a moving vehicle” Saturday. The off-duty deputy shot Walker and then called 911, police said.
Walker was pronounced dead at the scene.
A group of protesters gathered outside police headquarters Sunday disputed the department’s account.
Elizabeth Ricks, who said she witnessed the incident and applied pressure to Walker’s wound, told the crowd that Walker was attempting to cross the street to get to his home when he was struck by the deputy’s truck and then shot by Hash.
Ricks told The News & Observer of Raleigh she was on the scene and watched the entire situation unfold. As a trauma nurse, she jumped into action and tried to save Walker’s life.
“I did not see anyone in distress. The man was just walking home,” Ricks said.
Fayetteville police Chief Gina Hawkins said during a news conference Sunday that investigators examined the black box computer of the truck, which did not record any impact with any person or thing.
In bystander video of the shooting’s aftermath, it appears the off-duty deputy had been driving a red truck that wasn’t a law enforcement vehicle. She said the only person at the scene who indicated they witnessed what happened said Walker was not struck by the truck.
Hawkins said investigators noted that a windshield wiper was torn off the truck and the metal portion was used to break the windshield in several places.
“We would like to hear from anyone who saw what happened,” Hawkins said.
Investigators with the North Carolina State Bureau of Investigation have taken over the shooting investigation, Fayetteville police said.
The deputy was taken into custody and processed. Hawkins stressed the deputy is being treated like “any other citizen,” WTVD reported.
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