Suspect flees armed standoff at Charlotte, N.C., auto parts store

A standoff between police and an armed suspect who barricaded himself Friday inside a Charlotte, N.C., auto parts store ended after the man apparently fled the scene, authorities said.

The SWAT team stormed the Advanced Auto Parts but did not find the suspect who was believed to be inside, according to the Charlotte-Mecklenburg Police Department.

Officials said the suspect somehow made it out of the building unnoticed.

Earlier reports said a man may have tried to rob the store just before 8 a.m.

The business is in a strip mall on Freedom Drive near Interstate 85.

Dozens of officers with the Charlotte-Mecklenburg Police Department surrounded the building with guns drawn, and police used a loudspeaker to communicate with the suspect.

Reporters with WBTV News-Charlotte reported hearing police exclaim, “This is Charlotte Mecklenberg police. We know you're inside Advanced Parts. Come out with your hands up.”

No gunfire or injuries have been reported.

Police initially said they believed the suspect was alone inside the business.

Video footage from the scene provided by WSOC-TV9 in Charlotte shows officers arriving on the scene and taking up positions from across the street.

The standoff lasted more than two hours. Police blocked traffic on Freedom Drive in both directions, according to reports.