Oliver Wendell Watlington arrested after firing at Greensboro officers; one officer injured

Officers searching for Oliver Wendell Watlington located him in the 2000 block of Veasley Street at about 12:30 a.m. on Jan. 24 when an attempt to take him into custody turned violent; Watlington fired a handgun at officers and an officer returned fire, striking him. Greensboro Police officers rendered aid at the scene before Watlington, 59, was transported to a local hospital for treatment, and one officer who was injured was treated at a medical facility and released.

After Watlington was released from the hospital, Greensboro police arrested him on Feb. 15 and booked him into the Guilford County Jail, where he is being held without bond. "Watlington is charged with assault on a law enforcement officer with a firearm and possession of a firearm by a felon in connection with the officer-involved shooting," police said, and he was also served with additional warrants tied to a separate violent incident that include two counts of robbery with a dangerous weapon, sexual battery, assault on a female, misdemeanor crime of domestic violence, and interfering with emergency communications.

Greensboro Police Department officials said the agency’s Professional Standards Division is conducting an internal investigation "to determine whether departmental policies were followed." The officer involved in the shooting has been placed on administrative duty "in accordance with department policy" while criminal and internal inquiries remain ongoing.

The Jan. 24 encounter followed an incident two days earlier in the parking lot of Studio 6 that prompted the search for Watlington. Police located him on Veasley Street after the Studio 6 parking lot incident; when officers attempted to take him into custody he fired at officers, prompting the return of gunfire that struck him, according to the department’s account.

Key details remain unreleased by Greensboro police: the names and ranks of officers involved, the name of the hospital where Watlington received treatment, the specific injuries sustained by Watlington and by the officer who was treated and released, and whether body-worn camera or other video footage exists. Watlington remains in the Guilford County Jail on the charges and warrants served at booking as both the criminal case and the department’s internal review proceed.