Police shoot woman reportedly seen stabbing mother

Police received a call about a domestic disturbance in the Preston Creekside condominium complex, off Morrisville-Carpenter Road, shortly before 7 p.m.

Upon arrival, officers said they saw saw Aishnakya Santhanakrishnan, of 2213 Kudrow Lane, chasing her mother and stabbing her repeatedly with a knife outside her condo.

Officers told Santhanakrishnan to drop the knife, but when she did not, they shot her, officials said. She died of her wounds after being transported to WakeMed.

Her mother, Rajalakshni Cannipuphur, 58, of India, suffered multiple lacerations on her back and chest. She was in stable condition at WakeMed on Sunday after undergoing surgery.

Cannipuphur and her husband were visiting their daughter from India. An argument between the two women in the condominium spilled into the front yard, police said. It is unknown why the two were arguing.

Authorities determined one officer fired four shots, but they did not know how many times Santhanakrishnan had been hit.

The State Bureau of Investigation was reviewing the incident, following standard procedure for all officer-involved shootings.

Many neighbors said they did not know Santhanakrishnan but could not believe such a violent incident had occurred in their normally quiet condo community.

"Oh my God, what's going on?" resident Caroline Boggs said. "You know, I've never seen a cop here, except for maybe one. I think someone ran a stop sign."

“This is the first time since I’ve been on the board in 12 years that something like this has happened to this extreme, and we’re very concerned about the family that’s involved here,” Faulkner said.