John Bacon

USA TODAY

One of three men attempting to rob a Pizza Hut in Charlotte, N.C., was fatally shot by a restaurant employee, police say.

Charlotte-Mecklenburg police detectives told The Charlotte Observer that officers responding to a call from the restaurant at 1:38 a.m. ET Sunday morning found the wounded man, who was pronounced dead at the scene.

Police said the robbery suspect's handgun was found at the scene. The other men fled and had not been captured, the newspaper reported.

Detectives said the restaurant was closed when the shooting occurred and that no customers were present. The employee fired a handgun he owned.

Calls and emails from USA TODAY to police were not immediately returned.

Pizza Hut in a statement said its local franchise was cooperating fully with police. "The security of its staff is of utmost concern," the statement said, adding that support was being provided to employees. The employee involved in the shooting was placed on a leave of absence pending "further review."

In 2010, a deliveryman from a different Charlotte Pizza Hut shot two would-be robbers to death. He told police the robbers were pistol-whipping employees inside the store's cooler when he drew his weapon and fired.