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Robbery suspect killed near NC Zoo after four-county, high-speed chase

A man suspected of trying to rob a cab driver at gunpoint was shot and killed by Randolph County deputies Tuesday morning on North Carolina Zoo property.

Posted Updated

By
Laura Leslie
, WRAL Capitol Bureau chief
ASHEBORO, N.C. — A man suspected of trying to rob a cab driver at gunpoint was shot and killed by Randolph County deputies Tuesday morning on North Carolina Zoo property.

The shooting on a remote service road behind the expansive zoo ended a four-county chase that topped 100 mph.

The man, identified as 21-year-old Troy Chase Caster, pulled a pink handgun on a female cab driver Monday evening following a trip from Concord to China Grove, according to the Rowan County Sheriff's Office. The gun didn't fire when Caster pulled the trigger, and the driver then struggled with him for the weapon, the sheriff's office said in a statement.

A window in the cab was shot out during the struggle, and when Caster got out to pull the driver out, she sped off, the sheriff's office said.

Troy Chase Caster

Investigators were able to identify Caster because he was linked to the theft of a pink handgun from a Salisbury home last weekend, authorities said.

Caster applied for a pistol purchase permit last month but was denied by the sheriff’s office, authorities said.

Rowan County deputies tried to arrest Caster at his home early Tuesday, but he sped off. When deputies later spotted him in a car with no tags, they chased him into Stanly, Davidson and Randolph counties.

According to the Randolph County Sheriff's Office, the chase ensued to U.S. Highway 64 and onto Zoo Parkway, where Caster fired shots at the deputies.

Angie Foushee said she was working at a Waffle House in Asheboro when she heard the chase go by.

"We just looked up, and they had the intersection blocked off, and I counted like 13 blue lights just racing in, and they went down Zoo Parkway," Foushee said.

Randolph County Sheriff Greg Seabolt said Caster shot at the law enforcement officers pursuing him before he was finally cornered on a gravel road behind the zoo's Africa exhibit.

"Our main goal was to get this subject stopped as soon as we possibly could, but he was driving in a very erratic manner, and he was not going to stop for anyone," Seabolt said.

The chase ended around 8 a.m. when Randolph County deputies used a PIT maneuver to stop the vehicle.

Deputies returned gunfire, and Caster died at the scene. No law enforcement officers were hurt.

The car's passenger side was riddled with bullet holes, and dozens of shell casings were on the ground nearby.

Four Randolph County deputies involved in the shooting were placed on administrative leave while the State Bureau of Investigation reviews the case, which is standard procedure in officer-involved shootings.

Authorities said there was no threat to any visitors at the zoo, noting the area where the shooting occurred is owned by the zoo but isn't part of the facility.

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