Suspect dead, officer injured after reported shooting outside Buncombe County courthouse

ASHEVILLE, N.C. (WLOS) — Officials have identified the suspect killed in a shooting in downtown Asheville on Tuesday morning.

In a press released from the Asheville Police Department, authorities say Shane Tilman Kent, 29, was armed with a 9mm handgun and fired shots at a law enforcement officer. Kent, who was previously known to law enforcement, was shooting from inside a Chevrolet SUV, of which he was not the registered owner.

Deputies within the Buncombe County Courthouse responded to the scene immediately and confronted Kent, resulting in his death.

During the incident, Buncombe County Sheriff's Deputy Lt. Dale Den Ouden received a non-life threatening injury to his arm. He has been treated for his injury and released from Mission hospital. Den Ouden has served with the Buncombe County Sheriff's Office for 26 years and eight months.

Drew Reisinger, Buncombe County's register of deeds, was in his office just down the street at the time of the incident. On Twitter, he shared a series of tweets describing what he was seeing and videos showing numerous officers running toward the scene.

“All of a sudden, my staff and I looked up and saw all kinds of police vehicles,” Reisinger said. “We knew it was serious.

“We got a phone call from the county shortly after that we were on full lock-down and this wasn’t a drill."

Police and sheriff cars blocked College Street at Charlotte Street about three blocks from the courthouse.

“I went to the Renaissance building, where you could see someone hanging out the window,” said Khiyara Wynn, who heard the shots fired toward the courthouse.

She thought it might have been an officer in the hotel window perched as defense for other officers on the ground.

The Buncombe County Courthouse is closed for the rest of the day per the order of Judge Hill and Judge Cogburn.

Since the incident occurred within the city limits of Asheville, APD oversaw the preliminary investigation. The North Carolina State Bureau of Investigation (NCSBI) has assumed the primary investigatory responsibility and the Asheville Police Department is assisting their agency as needed.

This is a developing story. Check back at wlos.com for the latest updates.

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