Officer working off-duty hears gunshots and find man, woman wounded in Durham; man dies

Tuesday, August 27, 2024

One dead after two found with gunshot injuries in Durham

An off-duty Durham police officer working at a business finds a man and woman with gunshot wounds after hearing gunfire. The man died at the hospital.

DURHAM, N.C. (WTVD) -- The Durham Police Department (DPD) is investigating a deadly shooting that happened early Sunday morning in the 2200 block of Avondale Drive.

The shooting happened around 4:20 a.m. and an off-duty officer moonlighting at a nearby business was the first on the scene. The officer reportedly heard gunshots in a parking lot and went to investigate, according to DPD.

A man and woman were found and both had gunshot wounds. The man died at the hospital and the woman is expected to survive.

On Monday morning, DPD identified the man who died as 33-year-old Luis Hernandez of Raleigh.

Check crime in your area via the ABC11 Crime and Safety Tracker

Police said the incident appears to be isolated and there's no threat to the community.

Anyone with information about the shooting is encouraged to contact Investigator C. Robinson at (919) 560-4440 ext. 29415 or submit a CrimeStoppers tip online or call (919) 683-1200. CrimeStoppers pays cash rewards of up to $2,000 for information leading to arrests in felony cases and callers never have to identify themselves.

Durham 2nd Quarter Crime Stats

The shooting comes just days after Durham's Police Chief Patrice Andrews released the city's second-quarter crime stats. The stats show an increase in violent crimes involving younger people that the chief calls troubling. That said, the new numbers show homicide clearance rates are at 50%.

On Thursday, the Durham Police chief released new statistics about crime in the city.

"We're hoping at some point that we're going to be able to do a mobile tutoring vehicle where we're going into the communities most affected and taking time with those kids to tutor them and maybe show them a different way," Andrews said.

This comes as at least a quarter of the entire police force is vacant. But that hasn't ruined Andrews' spirit.

"We have resources, we have the funding," Andrews said. "We don't have the people, but we do have time and we will spend time in your community, and we will get you out of that community if you're going to be violent."

Durham Police said they've had 90 applicants through this second quarter, which is the highest they've had in the last ten years. They also recruited more female officers, which the City Council praised on Thursday.

Raw Video: Durham PD investigating deadly shooting on Avondale Drive