A 'Chaotic' Night of Violence Has Left 8 Injured and 2 Dead in Virginia Beach
At least 10 people were shot and two killed on Friday in what police called a “chaotic” night of violence in Virginia Beach with “multiple crime scenes.”
According to Virginia Beach Police Chief Paul Neudigate, officers on patrol responded to calls about an initial shooting near 20th street and Atlantic Avenue. The area is full of hotels like the Holiday Inn, Fairfield Inn and Suites, and a Super 8 motel and features a boardwalk and park that are popular among tourists during the warmer months. 8 victims were transported to local hospitals with gunshot wounds, local police said. Several of their injuries were deemed “life-threatening” by the police.
The police now believe the shooting was the result of an armed conflict between a group of individuals who had been physically fighting when members of the group produced firearms and began shooting. These details were provided to Esquire in an emailed update from the Virginia Beach Police Department.
While police were investigating the crime scene at Atlantic Avenue, shots rang out nearby at 19th street and Pacific Avenue. After arriving, officers discovered an adult female who “succumbed to her injuries at the scene.” The police do not currently believe the female victim was involved in the original shooting. They do not have any information regarding the shooter.
Around when police discovered the female victim, a uniformed VBPD officer encountered an armed person in the same vicinity. The encounter resulted “in a police intervention shooting” said Neudigate. The individual was killed by a police officer who was part of the VBPD’s Special Operations Division. That officer will be on administrative assignment throughout the investigation, which the police said was "standard procedure."
Neudigate confirmed that several people had been arrested in relation to Friday night’s events, but it remains unclear if any of them were involved in the shootings.
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