HIGH POINT, NC (WFMY) -- According to the High Point Police Department, an officer was shot while responding to a trespassing call at a Walmart on South Main St.
Thursday, the accused suspect Tyler Carrio was released from High Point Regional Hospital. He was taken into police custody. He's facing charges of: felony assault with a deadly weapon on a law enforcement officer, misdemeanor assault of a law enforcement officer and injury to personal property.
His bond is set at $1.1 million.
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It all started Sunday just after 9 p.m. when an officer was called to the scene for a man trespassing inside the store, refusing to leave. The officer located 26-year-old Tyler Carrico sitting inside the customer service area. When the officer began checking for warrants, Carrico ran.
*WARNING GRAPHIC LANGUAGE*
The officer was able to take down Carrico behind the customer service desk and radio for assistance while holding Carrico at gunpoint. When another officer arrived to help, Carrico grabbed the initial officer's gun and during the struggle, the gun went off and shot the officer in the hand.
Carrico started running again but was caught by officers in the self-checkout section of the store. Carrico then punched one of the officers and took off for a third time before finally being apprehended near the produce section.
A customer inside the store captured the takedown on his cellphone and shared it on social media.
"This suspect was a handful," explains High Point Assistant Police Chief Travis Stroud, who says he thinks the officers acted in accordance with their training.
"We saw the video on the ground. Our suspect stands 6’5”, 215. It’s a pretty big fella. Especially someone who doesn’t want to go to jail or put his hands behind his back so I’m happy with their response when we got there."
Police say Carrico remained verbally and physically combative after being handcuffed and had to
be restrained with leg irons.
The injured officer was taken to the hospital with non-life threatening injuries. Assistant Chief Stroud says the officer was shot through the webbing between his pinkie and ring finger and needed 5 stitches. The officer, who's name has not been released yet, went home from the hospital around 2 a.m. after the shooting. Police say he is not on administrative leave and will be able to return to work once his injuries heal.
The second officer injured did not require medical attention and suffered only minor injuries. The officer's name is not being released at this time and he is not on administrative leave.
Police say due to Carrico's behavior, he was taken to a local hospital for medical evaluation. He is being treated at High Point Regional for a blood disorder unrelated to the case. Police say there's a chance Carrico was also struck by a bullet fragment in the struggle at the store but otherwise he sustained no injuries.
WFMY's Jessica Winters spoke with Carrico's mother, Elizabeth Ann, on the phone because she lives in Indiana. She said "it's very important people know that he has a blood infection and one of the main side effects is mental confusion"
Elizabeth went on to add the she is not happy with the officers response. She said "my question is why did the police pull a gun out in the first place when my son wasn't armed and showed no signs of being armed."
Once he is discharged, police intend to charge him with Felony Assault With A Deadly Weapon on a Law Enforcement Officer, Misdemeanor Assault on a Law Enforcement Officer, and Injury to Personal
Property.
No one else was hurt in the incident.
WFMY also spoke with a friend of Carrico's, Dylan Hayes. He said he's known Tyler for about two months and just recently noticed his erratic behavior. Hayes met up with Tyler the night of the Walmart shooting to give him a ride, and knew something was off.
"I’ve known him for about two months and like in the last two weeks everything just kind of started being weird and he was very paranoid and I don't know; just off the wall," Hayes said.
Hayes said they are both recovering drug addicts, but Tyler Carrico has been struggling to get clean. Hayes said he believes Tyler Carrico was on Heroin the night of the incident.
"He was very paranoid, very paranoid he was hallucinating and wigging out, just very aggressive overall," Hayes said, in reference to about five hours before the shooting.
But Hayes did add that it was out of Tyler's character because he's known him to be a good guy.
"I was actually homeless at the time I met him and I helped him out one day and he had a hotel so he gave me a place to lay my head," Hayes said.
High Point Police held a news conference Monday afternoon to give an update. Police said Carrico was charged with shoplifting at the same Walmart last month. They weren't sure if Carrico was on drugs, but said he was acting incoherent.
During the news conference, police say Carrico talked about someone wanting to shoot him. An officer approached him and they talked for a few minutes. After an initial altercation when Carrico ran, the officer drew his weapon and held Carrico at gunpoint. Carrico initially complied and held his hands up. The officer holstered his weapon but the suspect started to resist again. The officer drew his weapon again and held him at gunpoint, standing above him on the ground, waiting for backup to arrive.
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