An alleged shoplifting incident escalated into violence Saturday where a woman suffered fatal injuries after a police officer fired multiple shots at her when they said she attempted to run them over with a car she was driving to flee the incident.
According to a statement released by police, the incident happened Saturday at approximately 3:40 p.m. where Deptford Township Police Officers were dispatched to The Marshalls Department store located at 1800 Clements Bridge Road for a shoplifting in progress report.
Police say upon their arrival, responding officers encountered three suspects, who had fled the store with a substantial amount of unpaid merchandise.
According to police one of the subjects, an African American male later identified as Mr. Raoul Gadson of Philadelphia, PA, was actively resisting with loss prevention agents from the store.
As Deptford Township Police Officers approached, police say Gadson fled on foot while the other two suspects, both females, entered a rented Nissan Armada.
Police say, officers, who were outside their vehicles, commanded the driver to stop; however, she allegedly accelerated towards them causing minor injuries to one officer who was struck by the open driver-side door as the driver raced from the scene and toward the other officer.
Police later identified the driver as Ms. LaShanda Anderson, 36, of Philadelphia, PA, and said she reportedly attempted to deliberately run over the second officer in an alleged assault by auto when the second officer to open fire several times at Ms. Anderson.
Police say the car continued across the parking lot, and down onto the access road exiting the parking lot where it subsequently came to rest.
Medical personnel pronounced dead at the scene police said.
An autopsy conducted Sunday the Gloucester County Medical Examiner ruled the cause of death as “multiple gunshot wounds.”
Officers took the passenger, Chanel Barnes, 27, of Philadelphia, PA, into custody and charged her with shoplifting.
EMS transported the officer who fired his weapon to an area hospital, where he was treated and released.
He will be placed on routine administrative leave pending the investigation of the shooting. There were no reported injuries to the other officer officials said.
Police say they have eyewitnesses who provided statements during the investigation that sided with the officers' accounts but would not release who made the comments.
Police charged Gadson with second-degree robbery and assault charges; he remains at large.
Circumstances surrounding the robbery and shooting are currently under investigation by the Gloucester County Prosecutor’s Office as per directives established by the Attorney General’s Office.
Prosecutor Charles Fiore vowed that his office will conduct a "comprehensive and objective investigation" into the shooting.
Photos: Facebook/ Gloucester County Prosecutor’s Office