And there could have very easily have been multiple killings last night after a wild shooting spree on East and West canal streets. This was the scene just after a barrage of gunfire exploded into the night on the streets surrounding the canal. The first salvo was launched just after 8:00 and Sharett Wellcome who lives on Wagner's Lane was inside her house when she was shot in her hand by a stray bullet.
Police responded to the reports of gunshots being fired – but the shooters weren't the least bit scared. They reportedly opened fire on police. Police say that when they got to South Street, which is between the Canal and Wagner's Lane, they saw four dark-skinned men on the bridge heading to West Canal. When they saw the police and BDF patrol, they opened fire. The lawmen returned fire but the four men ran off without being injured. Police say they have tracked down a 16-year-old of a West Street address and are looking for three others.
Our team, which responded to the scene, saw a number of live rounds as well as expended casings. The police press officer said he can no longer disclose how many expended shells were found at a crime scene, which we interpret as another way for the police senior command to sanitize crime reports.
But none of that spin can alter the fact that it was an evening of sustained terror in the Canal area because earlier on, at about 6:45PM, Dana Flowers, who lives on West Canal, was at home with her four children when she heard shots being fired nearby. She and her kids took cover and when the shots subsided. She saw a clear-skinned man standing at the corner of Berkeley Street and West Canal – who is the likely suspect. Her front door was riddled with bullets, and slugs were found inside her bedroom, but miraculously no one in the home was injured.
The general area is usually under sustained police patrol but residents complain that shortly after being deployed, the patrols disappear. Recently, a BDF soldier who fell asleep and had his gun stolen was assigned to patrol the same area, which we note is a hotspot which sits between 3 sometimes dueling groups -- Rocky Road, George Street and Jump street.
