CHARLOTTE, N.C. – A woman has drowned while running from Charlotte police who were investigating a report of shoplifting.
Charlotte police say 43-year-old Gracie Nell Johnson was found in a swollen stream Friday afternoon. Another woman who ran with her is still missing.
Police say the pair ran from a Burlington Coat Factory and into the nearby stream after police arrived to investigate a report of three shoplifters at the store. A third person was taken into custody.
As much as six inches of rain fell in parts of North Carolina's largest city Friday, swelling creeks and streams. Dozens of motorists became stranded and some had to be rescued by boat. Two neighborhoods had to be evacuated.
Charlotte Fire Department Captain Rob Brisley says most of the danger had passed by Friday evening.
