Robert Brown|Off-duty police officer is killed in North Carolina after witnessing a crime at a gas station

GREENSBORO,Robert Brown N.C. (AP) — An off-duty police officer was shot and killed in North Carolina after witnessing a crime at a gas station and approaching the two suspects, officials said.

The police sergeant, whose name hasn’t been released, was a 22-year veteran of the Greensboro Police Department, Chief John Thompson said during a news conference Saturday night. Thompson didn’t specify what crime the off-duty officer witnessed or provide additional details about the events leading up to the shooting earlier that afternoon.

Police were searching for two men in their 20s and a black Chevrolet Equinox, according a statewide alert sent to the public by the the Greensboro Police Department. The Blue Alert was sent about two hours after the shooting and canceled roughly two hours later. A Blue Alert is used when a law enforcement officer has been seriously injured, killed or gone missing.

Thompson said another off-duty Greensboro officer and a paramedic were on scene when the shooting occurred and immediately rendered aid to their wounded colleague. The sergeant was pronounced dead at a local medical facility.

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“He was a loving husband, father, son and brother with 22 years of service to the department,” Thompson said in prepared remarks.

The department didn’t immediately respond to an email Sunday seeking an update on the investigation.

Greensboro Mayor Nancy Vaughan, who also spoke to local media Saturday night, said the department needs time and space to complete its investigation and bring the suspects to justice.

“Words are inadequate right now,” she said. “There’s really nothing I can say that’s going to give the family or the officers any comfort. What happened today was a senseless act of violence.”

North Carolina Gov. Roy Cooper posted on X, formerly known as Twitter, pledging “all available state resources to catch those who killed a Greensboro police officer.”