Police radio: Man put gun to own head just before police killed him at Charlotte nightclub
.jpg "Coyote Joe’s, a Charlotte nightclub known for headline country music acts and a large dance floor, was the scene of an officer-involved shooting that left one man dead Saturday.")
A man in distress was holding a gun to his head in the moments before Charlotte-Mecklenburg Police shot him to death outside Coyote Joe’s nightclub Saturday, police radio traffic reveals.
“We’ve had a man in distress with a gun to his head,” an unidentified officer said by radio at 11:18 pm Saturday. “We’re trying to talk him down now... Get MEDIC started and a few more units to the building. We’re in the back.”
Two minutes later, an officer reported: “We got shots fired… OK, now everybody can come, lights and sirens. MEDIC. Fire. Lights and sirens.”
The man killed, Lucas Armstrong, worked for Coyote Joe’s as a security guard, according to his father, Scott Armstrong. Reached while he was at the funeral home Monday, Scott Armstrong told the Observer that he knew little about what led to his son’s death.
He was 28 and had lived in Gaston County, according to Nexis, an online research tool.
In a statement posted on Coyote Joe’s website, the nightclub said:
“Our heart goes out to the family of Lucas Armstrong and to the police officer involved in the tragic incident that occurred Saturday night. Our thoughts and prayers are with all that were involved.”
Police were responding to a report of a man with a firearm outside Coyote Joe’s — a popular country nightclub — when the shooting occurred, CMPD said in a news release issued Sunday.
“An officer perceived an imminent deadly threat and discharged his firearm, striking the subject,” the CMPD release said. “The male subject was pronounced deceased at the scene.”
The victim was standing in the doorwell of his car just before the shooting, according to an officer on the radio traffic. He was armed with a 9 mm handgun, according to a police incident report.
CMPD has not released the name of the officer involved, but said that officer would be placed on paid administrative leave “per standard protocol” while the case was investigated.
Police spokesman Brian Gallagher said there would be no further updates on Monday.
The State Bureau of Investigation and CMPD’s Internal Affairs unit are both investigating the shooting.
No officers were hurt in the incident, but one officer was taken to the hospital as a precaution to check his vital signs, CMPD Chief Johnny Jennings told WSOC.
The phone number for Coyote Joe’s went unanswered mid-day on Monday.
News and Observer database editor David Raynor contributed.
EDITOR’S NOTE: CMPD asks anyone with information about this shooting to call 704-432-TIPS or leave information anonymously with Crime Stoppers at 704-334-1600 or http://charlottecrimestoppers.com.
This story was originally published December 30, 2024 at 1:36 PM with the headline "Police radio: Man put gun to own head just before police killed him at Charlotte nightclub."
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