Police seize assault rifle

North Charleston police recovered a high-powered rifle early this morning after officers heard about a dozen shots fired near a night club.

Officers were helping clear traffic at the Titanic Club at 2:06 a.m. when they heard gunfire near Rivers and Aviation avenues. As officers searched for the source, callers told dispatchers that they heard gunfire possibly coming from a gray vehicle in the Oakgrove community.

By 2:10 a.m., an officer spotted a car on Gumwood Drive that matched the description. The car pulled into a yard and a man ran out of the rear driver's-side door, an incident report says.

The officer chased the suspect and attempted to intercept him at a trailer but the suspect was able to circle back, away from the officer. The officer found the assault rifle lying on a path leading to railroad tracks. The Colt AR-15 was loaded with 41 .223-caliber cartridges. A spent .223-caliber shell casing was also found in the backseat of the car.

Officers were still on the scene when Hanahan police officers found the suspect hiding in a garage on Palm Street. Police charged the 17-year-old suspect with discharging a firearm within city limits and unlawful entry into the garage.

Two others in the car were also arrested.

Read more in Tuesday's editions of The Post and Courier.

Reach Andy Paras at 937-5589 or aparas@postandcourier.com.