A gunman has massacred five people including a police officer after going on a rampage in North Carolina and has now been taken into custody, it is confirmed.
Raleigh Police were called to reports of a shooting in the Heddingham area of the city where a teenager is believed to have been firing indiscriminately with a long gun on Thursday evening.
It is believed the shooter then barricaded himself into a "barn" in east Raleigh and more than a dozen police vehicles were seen parked by a wooded area.
Police were using a drone to locate the shooter, and several hours after the attack began, he has now been taken into custody.
One officer has been killed and another was also hit but has not suffered life-threatening injuries. The details of the other victims is unclear but Mayor Mary-Ann Baldwin confirmed that five people had died.
She also said that the shooter was "contained in a residence" and Raleigh Police have since confirmed that the shooter is in custody.
An off-duty police officer is thought to have confronted the teenage gunman and been shot, reported abc11.com.
A spokesperson for WakeMed Health and Hospitals told CNN that four people were being treated at a local hospital from an active shooting scene but did not give any details on their conditions.
Police tweeted: "The Raleigh Police Department is currently on the scene of an active shooting in the area of the Neuse River Greenway near Osprey Cove Drive and Bay Harbor Drive. Residents in that area are advised to remain in their homes."
It added: "Multiple law enforcement agencies are involved in this investigation."
A later tweet stated: "Residents in the area of McConnell Oliver Drive, Tarheel Club Drive, and Old Milburnie Road are being advised to remain indoors. Drivers are advised to avoid the area and seek alternate routes."
Raleigh city council member Corey Branch told local media that two police officers had been shot but he was unaware how many other victims were involved.
Governor Ray Cooper tweeted: "I have spoken with Mayor Baldwin and instructed state law enforcement to provide assistance responding to the active shooter in East Raleigh. State and local officers are on the ground and working to stop the shooter and keep people safe."
