CANTON, Ohio – An exchange of gunfire left a wanted man from Danville, Va. and a U.S. Marshal injured outside an apartment complex in Canton, Ohio Wednesday evening. Both the officer and the man, 33-year-old Aaron Pierre Thomas, were being treated at an undisclosed hospital Wednesday night, according to U.S. Marshal Peter J. Elliot. The officer was expected to be released while Thomas was listed in critical condition.

According to a press release from the Northern Ohio Violent Task Force, Thomas was wanted for armed robbery, possession of a firearm and aggravated assault out of Danville, Va. He fled to Ohio and hid at a friend’s apartment in Canton.

Around 5 p.m., members of the task force, the Canton Police SWAT team and Stark County Sheriff’s deputies went to serve the out-of-state warrant and were met with gunfire. Elliot said when officers arrived, the suspect yelled that he wanted to be killed by police and came outside firing. Thomas and one of the U.S. Marshals were shot in the exchange. The agent was scheduled to be released from the hospital Wednesday night.

Agents say a loaded firearm belonging to Thomas was recovered. The Ohio Bureau of Criminal Investigation will review the officer-involved shooting.

Thomas has a violent crime history. He and another man are wanted in an armed robbery that happened March 15, 2021 at a motel on West Main Street in Danville.

In 2017, Thomas was convicted of voluntary manslaughter, discharging a firearm in a public place and possession of a firearm by a non-violent felon in the death of 15-year-old Sean Antuan Claiborne of Danville. The shooting was the culmination of an argument over a laptop. Testimony at Thomas’ trial  in Danville Circuit Court indicated Claiborne had threatened people with a firearm on the night of Nov. 17, 2016.

Claiborne died of multiple gunshot wounds to the back in front of the defendant’s home.