Police in South Carolina say one person is
has been shot and several others have been taken hostage after a
disgruntled employee opened fired inside a restaurant in downtown
Charleston this afternoon.
Law
enforcement officials are blocking King Street between Calhoun and
Morris streets to vehicle and pedestrian traffic, according to a tweet
sent out by police shortly after noon local time.
According
to witnesses, it is believed the incident began unfolding at Virginia's
On King, a Southern food restaurant in the 400 block of King Street.
A family were having lunch at the eatery when they tell the Charleston Post and Courier a middle-aged man emerged from the kitchen brandishing a loaded revolver and announced, 'There's a new boss in town.'
The gunman’s sudden appearance sent patrons fleeing for their lives out of the eatery.
A
tourist from Maryland and his son told the paper a similar story,
recounting how a black man in an apron walked through the front door
holding a small-caliber revolver, locked the door and said, 'I am the
new king of Charleston.'
Some described
the person in question as a black man in his late 50s. One diner, Patsy
Plant, told the paper the armed man looked like a 'grandpa' but had 'a
crazy look.'
Reports of an active shooter prompted a heavy police presence in the area and caused lockdowns at nearby businesses.
Heavily armed SWAT officers and a bomb squad also responded to the scene.
'This
was not an act of terrorism,' Charleston Mayor John Tecklenburg rushed
to reassure the public. 'This was not a hate crime. This was a
disgruntled employee.'
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