Police and Corrective Services are investigating an incident in Wollongong after a man overcame a prison officer, took her weapon, and fired several shots at passing vehicles before turning the gun on himself.
The 37-year-old was an inmate from the South Coast Correctional Centre in Nowra and was on a medical transfer to Wollongong Hospital for treatment with corrections officers.
At some stage during the transfer as they neared Wollongong Hospital the man escaped from custody, overpowered one of the officers, and stole her weapon.
As standard procedure, corrections officers carry weapons during medical escorts.
Eyewitnesses told the ABC they saw the man, in prison greens and holding a hand gun, running east along Crown Street towards the Piccadilly Shopping Arcade.
One witness said he heard a muffled shot, before a clear gun shot echoed across the busy western part of the city.
Other witnesses reported seeing people fleeing from the Piccadilly Shopping Arcade.
Ambulance officers were called to the scene just after midday and confirmed the man suffered a gun shot wound to the neck.
Paramedics made repeated attempts to revive him, but he was pronounced dead at the scene.
The corrections officer was taken to hospital but is not believed to have sustained any physical injuries.
She and another officer involved in the transfer are receiving welfare support from the Corrective Services Department.
Road closures have been in place at the main intersections of Crown and Gladstone streets since midday.
Detectives could be seen talking to a number of local shop owners and witnesses, while forensic officers conducted an extensive canvas of the streets and around the arcade.
Corrective Services say at no stage did its officers fire at the inmate.
The death will be the subject of a coronial investigation.
