Fatal shooting involved cop, her boyfriend and her estranged husband, NC police say

An off-duty police officer was killed when her current boyfriend and her estranged husband, a firefighter, encountered each other in a parking lot, according to investigators in North Carolina.

Both men were armed, shots were fired, and all three were hit, police say.

It happened just after 9 p.m. on Wednesday, Dec. 17, in a parking lot on Cedar Lane Drive in Lexington, and Lexington Police Officer Kaitlin Crook was the only one to be fatally hit in the exchange, officials say.

“Police responded to 911 calls about shots fired. First responders arrived a short time later and began life-saving measures, but tragically, Officer Crook was pronounced dead at the scene,” police said in a news release.

“Two men were also found with gunshot wounds.”

Both men were hospitalized, with Zachary Rogers in critical condition and Joshua Moore in stable condition and expected to recover, police said.

Rogers is a Lexington firefighter and the estranged husband of Crook, police said. He was off duty at the time of the shooting. “A handgun believed to be his was recovered at the scene,” officials said.

Moore is a Thomasville resident and is “Crook’s current boyfriend,” police said. “A handgun believed to be his was also recovered at the scene,” police said.

No other people are believed to have been involved in the incident, police said.

The N.C. State Bureau of Investigation will investigate the case.

“There are no words that can adequately capture the weight of what so many people are feeling during this terrible and devastating time,” Lexington Police Chief Robby Rummage said in a release. “Losing a police officer is every chief’s worst nightmare. My heart is heavy.”

Lexington is about a 60-mile drive northeast from uptown Charlotte.

This story was originally published December 19, 2025 at 8:32 AM with the headline "Fatal shooting involved cop, her boyfriend and her estranged husband, NC police say."