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Police: North Carolina man wanted in girlfriend's death killed in shootout

CHARLOTTE, N.C. — A man sought in the murder of a North Carolina woman was allegedly killed in a shootout outside Charlotte-Mecklenburg Police Department headquarters late Thursday.

Police Chief Kerr Putney said Jonathan Bennett, 23, ambushed and shot at officers, who returned fire. Putney said Bennett was killed in the return fire.

“Times like this make you appreciate people who voluntarily put their lives on the line to keep us safe,” Putney said.

Police said Bennett was wanted after being accused of shooting and killing his girlfriend, 24-year-old Brittany White, Thursday afternoon. White was the mother of Journei Bennett, the couple’s 2-month-old daughter, sources said. Police said Bennett left the scene with the child, and left the infant with her grandmother, who lives in north Charlotte.

Television crews were outside police headquarters as police were about to brief them about an unrelated incident when shots were fired.

An officer was shot in the leg and suffered non-life-threatening injuries, police said.

State records show Bennett is a convicted felon. He served time in prison in 2013 for breaking and entering and larceny.

Records from the Mecklenburg County Sheriff's Office show Bennett was arrested twice in 2017. On March 30, he was arrested for assault on a female and misdemeanor larceny. On April 6, he was arrested forcommunicating threats. He also was arrested for similar charges on Oct. 30, 2016.