3 men shot at Raleigh shopping center; businesses riddled with bullet holes
RALEIGH, N.C. (WTVD) -- Three people were shot near a Food Lion parking lot Monday night and police continued to investigate a day later. And 24 hours after bullets littered this shopping plaza, shoppers were back -- even as they wondered whether it was safe to even grab groceries.
The shooting happened about 9 p.m Monday in the 1100 block of Raleigh Boulevard in front of a restaurant called Lam's Garden in the Raleigh Boulevard Shopping Center
Two men were shot and taken to a hospital in serious condition.
A third man was taken to the hospital in a private vehicle. That victim had what police described as non-life-threatening injuries.
Businesses struck by barrage of bullets
Multiple businesses around 1100 North Raleigh Boulevard were struck by gunfire.
Piles of crushed glass littered the breezeway at the Raleigh Boulevard Shopping Center on Tuesday.
"It's absolutely ridiculous, it's terrifying," Chuck Jaber of Check Cashing said.
Jaber saw the dozens of bullet holes that marked the columns and walls.
"Now with this, it will affect our business," Jaber said. "Coming to a shopping center like this and seeing all these bullet holes in the wall, a lot of people are going to retreat."
Lam's Garden had the most damage with its door and window shot out.
The owners told ABC11 they were the only ones open at the time of the shooting but fortunately, no one inside was hurt.
ABC11 is tracking crime and safety across Raleigh and in your neighborhood
"Everybody here in the shopping center, we know each other and we're good friends," Jaber said. "We try to protect this because this is our livelihood. This is our business, this is where we feed our families from. It really is very discouraging, very disappointing to see this."
A cautious return to normal routines
Some people in the community were rattled by the gun violence.
Colleen Lennon lives nearby and has shopped here for 15 years.
It's right around the corner. So this is where I come," Lennon said Tuesday evening.
But this trip was a little different.
"It is concerning. And it's also concerning this isn't the first time something unfortunate or violent has happened here," Lennon said. "But I'm just hoping that this is a little signal like, hey, let's up some security. Let's make sure people are safer."
But safety and security were shattered Monday night in this shopping center. Evidence markers lined the parking lot, shell casings, bullet holes, and broken glass everywhere.
It is the aftermath of gun violence.
On Tuesday evening, Precious Johnson was headed back to Food Lion with her two daughters with Monday's shootout top of mind.
"It's tough. But hopefully, everything comes together in the community and a lot of these shootings will stop going on because it's been pretty bad lately," Johnson said. " I definitely do want to change so I want my kids to be safe when they come out. You know, when they come into the store. I don't want them to have to be scared."
Next to Food Lion are other businesses that are boarded up and closed because of the violence.
Mark Campbell missed the shooting by 30 minutes
"I literally came to Lam's Garden last night, 30 minutes prior to this happening," Campbell said. "If I would have been here 30 minutes later to this happening, I would have been in the middle of all of this."
No arrests have been made. Police said Tuesday they are working to identify the people involved.
"It makes me feel sad because this shouldn't be happening out here," Marcus McNeil said. "Wherever you go, you got to watch your back now more than you do anything else."
Mozelle Burnett held on to her great-grandson as she thought about his future.
"People are running a business and how could somebody come shoot it up?" Burnett said. "They don't care about anyone. People are getting hurt, shot and killed over something I don't know why."
Anyone with information on this case is asked to visit Crimestoppers for anonymous reporting options or call (919) 996-1193.
