Mayor: 'Disgruntled employee' kills 1 at Charleston restaurant

The suspect was shot by police and is in critical condition.

ByABC News
August 25, 2017, 12:01 AM

— -- A "disgruntled employee" shot and killed an individual at a restaurant in a tourist area in Charleston, South Carolina, said the city's mayor.

Mayor John Tecklenburg said the shooting was reported just after noon at Virginia's restaurant on King Street, one of the city's busiest thoroughfares.

He said the suspect was a "disgruntled employee that came back to his place of employment with a gun and killed an individual in the restaurant [and] held another hostage for some time."

The Charleston County Coroner's Office identified the victim as Anthony Shane Whiddon, 37, from Goose Creek, South Carolina. Whiddon was executive chef at the restaurant.

Tecklenburg added, "This was not terrorism. This was not a hate crime. This was a tragic case of a disgruntled individual."

The suspect was shot by police and was taken to a nearby hospital in critical condition.

Tecklenburg asked people to offer "prayers for one family today," referring to the victim's loved ones.