CHARLOTTE, N.C. -- Charlotte-Mecklenburg Police said the suspect in a homicide in west Charlotte died Thursday night.
Shortly after 2:00 p.m. officers responded to the 4100 block of Carlyle Drive and discovered the body of a woman. She has been identified as 24-year-old Brittany White, the first homicide victim of 2018 in the Queen City.
Investigators were searching for the suspect, 23-year-old Jonathan Bennett. He was last seen driving an older, white Ford Expedition with New York license plates HUP3071.
Detectives said Bennett took his daughter, Journei Bennett, with him. An Amber Alert was issued briefly, but around 5:30 p.m., police tweeted the child had been found safe.
Journei was taken to Bennett's grandmother's house in north Charlotte. Police told NBC Charlotte another child had been found on the scene of the homicide unharmed.
We checked into Bennett's criminal history. He's been charged in the past with assault on a female, communicating threats and misdemeanor larceny.
Thursday night, neighbors begged Bennett to turn himself in.
"I'm at a loss for words. I don't understand why you did what you did. You could've talked it out or came and talked to me," said Vincent Tillery.
Late Thursday night, police said Bennett engaged police in a shootout outside headquarters in uptown. Investigators said he later died at the hospital. An officer was shot in the leg and is expected to be okay.
