UPDATE 3 - 3/7/19: At approximately 12:19 p.m. on March 6, 2019, officers of the Morgantown Police Department responded to a report of shots fired, armed fugitive in the area of Falling Run Road and College Avenue.
Members of the U.S. Marshals Service were attempting to locate Donquale GREY, who was wanted for the attempted murder of a Bluefield Virginia Police Officer, in the area of College Avenue. GREY attempted to flee from the U.S. Marshals after leaving 1133 College Avenue by running down a wooded hill behind the residence. GREY was armed with a handgun as he fled. During a foot pursuit, the suspect fired the handgun and at least one member of the U.S. Marshals Service returned fire. The suspect was found deceased at the scene.
The Morgantown Police Department, West Virginia University Police Department, Monongalia County Sheriff’s Department and West Virginia State Police all responded to the area. Due to the danger to the immediate community, Falling Run Road and College Avenue were closed. Houses in the vicinity of the suspected residence that the suspect was coming from were evacuated for the safety and wellbeing of the occupants.
The Tactical Operation was contained within the wooded area behind 1133 College Avenue between College Avenue and Falling Run Road. Officers blocked the adjacent roadways as a precaution to prevent any citizens from entering the area and becoming endangered. Additional officers established an outer perimeter in order to allow for evacuation from the tactical area of operation and prevent any vehicles from driving into the area.
Social media postings, news releases, and other alerts were sent by the Morgantown Police Department, City of Morgantown, and West Virginia University Police Department in order to alert citizens and students of the danger in the area and to avoid this area until the incident was resolved.
The Morgantown Police Department Special Response Team conducted a tactical entry at 1133 College Avenue to make sure that there were no injuries, other suspects or armed individuals associated with this case. After the entry was made and the tactical situation was over, the streets were opened again to traffic and the citizens were returned to their homes. The roadways were opened at approximately 1:55 p.m.
During the tactical portion of this incident both West Virginia University Police and the Monongalia County Sheriff’s Office assisted the Morgantown Police Department by answering those calls that the officers could not respond to while they were on scene with this incident. It is because of the ongoing cooperation between law enforcement agencies in Monongalia County that allows for quick responses to emergencies like this.
The U.S. Marshals Service has turned the investigation into this shooting incident over to the Morgantown Police Department. Detectives of the Morgantown Police Department obtained a search warrant for the 1133 College Avenue and worked late into the evening of March 6, 2019 processing the scene and collecting evidence. Officers returned to the wooded area during daylight hours on March 7 to continue their investigation.
An autopsy was performed on GREY on March 7, 2019. The results of that autopsy are pending from the West Virginia Medical Examiner’s Office.
The Morgantown Police Department is conducting a thorough and comprehensive investigation of all circumstances surrounding this shooting incident and will review the investigative findings with the Monongalia County Prosecutor’s Office as well as the U.S. Marshal’s Office as appropriate.
The Morgantown Police Department cannot comment on any administrative actions regarding the policies, procedures and review of the U.S. Marshals Office.
This continues to be an ongoing investigation.
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UPDATE 2 - 3/6/19: At approximately 12:19 p.m. on March 6, 2019, officers of the Morgantown Police Department responded to a report of shots fired and an armed fugitive in the area of Falling Run Road and College Avenue.
Members of the U.S. Marshalls Service were attempting to locate and apprehend a suspected armed fugitive in the area of College Avenue. The suspected fugitive attempted to flee from the Marshalls and was armed with a handgun. During a foot pursuit, the suspect fired the handgun and at least one member of the U.S. Marshalls Service returned fire. The suspect was found deceased at the scene.
The Morgantown Police Department, West Virginia University Police Department, Monongalia County Sheriff’s Department and West Virginia State Police all responded to the area. Due to the danger to the immediate community, Falling Run Road and College Avenue were closed. Houses in the vicinity of the suspected residence that the suspect was coming from were evacuated for the safety and wellbeing of the occupants. The Morgantown Police Department Special Response Team conducted a tactical entry at 1133 College Avenue to make sure that there were no injuries, other suspects or armed individuals associated with this case.
Social media postings, news releases, and other alerts were sent by the Morgantown Police Department, City of Morgantown, and West Virginia University Police Department in order to alert citizens and students of the danger in the area and to avoid this area until the incident was resolved.
After the entry was made and the tactical situation was over, the streets were opened again to traffic and the citizens were returned to their homes. The roadways were opened and the all safe was given at approximately 1:55 pm.
During the tactical portion of this incident both West Virginia University Police and the Monongalia County Sheriff’s Office assisted the Morgantown Police Department by answering those calls that the officers could not respond to while they were on scene with this incident. It is because of the ongoing cooperation between law enforcement agencies in Monongalia County that allows for quick responses to emergencies like this.
The suspect information is not being released pending notification of his next of kin. Additionally, the Morgantown Police Department was a support agency during this incident and the shooting investigation and details of the ongoing investigation surrounding this incident and the suspect will be made available through the U.S. Marshalls Office in Clarksburg.
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UPDATE 1 - 3/6/19: College Avenue and Falling Run Road area are now safe and have reopened to traffic. Additional details about the incident will be provided as they are available.
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ORIGINAL - 3/6/19: Morgantown Police are responding to a report of shots fired in the vicinity of College Avenue and Falling Run Road. The roads in this area are closed and citizens are asked to stay clear of this area until further notice. This article will be updated as information is available.