A Greensboro, North Carolina, police officer who had spent more than 20 years working as a lieutenant, lifeguard and instructor in Beach Haven, was killed just before Christmas in a grocery store shooting, officials said.
Michael T. Horan, 44, was responding to a report of an armed man at a Food Lion in Greensboro on Dec. 23 when he was fatally shot, authorities said.
Greensboro police on Tuesday said Tarell Isaac McMillian, 34, of Greensboro, was arrested and charged with first-degree murder in Horan’s homicide. McMillian was being held in Guliford County Jail without bond.
Horan was hired by the Greensboro Police Department in 2017 and quickly developed a reputation for bravery. During a visit to Emerald Isle, North Carolina, with his family in 2019, he risked his life by swimming 60 yards into the ocean to save a man and his son, who were caught in a rip current, according to Help a Hero, a fundraising web site.
“To put it simply, we’re heartbroken,” Greensboro city manager Trey Davis said at a press conference.
Horan appeared to be comfortable with the ocean. He served in the Beach Haven Beach Patrol from 1995 to 2017 and had been a member of the U.S. Coast Guard since 2000, Help a Hero said.
Michael Lawrence, former chief of the beach patrol, told WPVI-TV in Philadelphia that Horan was a consummate professional who would help people off the beach and walk them home.
“He just made people laugh. He made people comfortable. You just wanted to be around him,” Lawrence said. “He was one of those magnetic type of individuals.”
According to a statement from the North Carolina State Bureau of Investigation, Horan was the first person to arrive at Food Lion following a 911 call.
Horan was killed “after a brief struggle,” according to the department, and “did not have time to draw or fire his weapon.”
USA TODAY contributed to this story.
Michael L. Diamond is a business reporter who has been writing about the New Jersey economy and health care industry since 1999. He can be reached at mdiamond@gannettnj.com.
This article originally appeared on Asbury Park Press: Former Beach Haven patrolman killed in N.C. grocery store shooting
