GASTONIA, N.C. -- An S.C. law enforcement official said a slain burglary suspect was a South Carolina serial killer.

South Carolina Law Enforcement agents spent the day investigating in Gaston County, N.C., after a man suspected of trying to burglarize a home was shot to death by police. That man’s name has not been released.

“A killer is off the streets,” said SLED director Reggie Lloyd.

He said ballistics from the Gaston County crime scene and the serial killings match. He said other evidence never released to the public also helped to connect the man to the slayings.

SLED officials initially said they were checking any cases with similarities to the recent slayings of five people near Gaffney, S.C. An old champagne-colored Ford Explorer similar to the one linked to the serial killer was found near the scene in Gaston County. Officers said it belonged to the slain man.

Neighbors said the man matched the description of the serial killer, too, who was described as about 6-feet-2 inches tall with salt and pepper hair.

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• VIDEO: Officers Shoot Man To Death In Gaston County
• VIDEO: S.C. Officers Searching For Killer Visit Gaston Co. Scene
• RAW AUDIO: Officer Tells 911 Operator He’s Been Shot

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Gaston County police said they received a call about a possible burglary early Monday, and when three officers arrived, they found three people inside the home in the 700 block of Dallas-Spencer Mountain Road. Two were a brother and sister pair who owns the home and the third was an acquaintance, police said.

Police said the acquaintance first gave a fake name to officers. They said they then discovered the man had an outstanding warrant for being a habitual felon from nearby Lincoln County, and when they tried to serve the warrant, the man pulled out a gun and opened fire on the officers.

Police said the man shot Officer J.K. Shaw of the Gaston County Police Department in the foot at about 2:45 a.m. The other officers fired back and killed the man.

Neighbors said no one has lived in the home for a while. A neighbor called police when she saw a strange car outside of the home.

Shaw was taken to Gaston Memorial Hospital where he was released several hours after the shooting. He is expected to be OK. Gaston County police said the other two people who had been in the home were in custody, but didn't indicate whether they were facing any charges.

The killing spree in Gaffney occurred in a 10-mile area over six days. A peach farmer was killed June 27, an 83-year-old woman and her daughter were found bound and shot four days later and the next day a father and his teen daughter were shot in their family's furniture store.

People throughout the northwestern South Carolina region have armed themselves, locked their doors and reported anything suspicious.

Cherokee County Sheriff Bill Blanton has said physical evidence linked the five killings in this 54,000-person county known for mills and peach orchards, but he has not elaborated.

Investigators won't give a motive for the killings. They said they haven't determined if the killer knew any of the victims or whether anything linked the five people killed.

"He's just a cold-blooded murderer," Blanton told ABC's "Good Morning America on Monday. "He's ruined the lives of these three families and has torn our community up. But folks are dealing with it and dealing with it well."