1 person shot in parking lot of Lake Orion Beaumont Medical Center
Gunfire rang out Monday afternoon in the parking lot of the Beaumont Medical Center in Lake Orion — less than 7 miles south of Oxford High School, where a mass shooting last week set the community on edge and left four students dead.
The Oakland County Sheriff's Office confirmed a 20-year-old Oxford Township man was shot outside the clinic at 1455 S. Lapeer Road, which offers cardiology services along with physical and occupational therapy, rehabilitation, imaging and more.
"The only victim we are aware of at this time is in transport to a local hospital," Undersheriff Michael McCabe said in a statement.
More: In just 5 minutes, a gunman turned a normal day at Oxford High into a nightmare
More: In one morning, the Oxford community changed forever
"This is not an active shooter situation," he said, though businesses were asked to lock down as a precaution while authorities cleared the building.
By 4:45 p.m., the building had been cleared, McCabe said.
Sheriff Michael Bouchard said he was at the visitation service for one of the victims of the Oxford High shooting Monday afternoon when he was alerted that gunshots had been fired outside the Beaumont clinic.
But, he said, the latest incident of gun violence had "nothing to do with anything everybody's super on edge about," referring to the school shooting. Rather, it appears to have involved a targeted attack on a man who owed a debt.
The Sheriff's Office said in a Monday night release that the victim was shot in a car in the parking lot while engaged in a transaction to pay a debt for marijuana.
The suspect, who is known to the victim, pulled out a black semi-automatic handgun and demanded the victim's money. There was a struggle in the car and the suspect shot the victim in the right knee, the Sheriff's Office said.
Authorities said as the victim fled the car, the suspect tried to shoot him again, but the firearm did not discharge.
The man managed to get inside the Beaumont building and hide behind a door, Bouchard said.
"That's where we found him when I came in. He was inside the back door," he said.
Three suspects escaped in an unknown direction in a dark metallic blue, four-door Chevrolet Malibu, the Sheriff's Office said. The victim is being treated at a local hospital for a non-life-threatening injury.
More: A week after Oxford shooting, police investigate threats at Romeo, Crestwood, Dearborn
Bouchard said he is confident the shooting victim will be able to identify the suspects. Detectives were able to identify a possible suspect who shot the victim and he is being sought, according to the Sheriff's Office.
"It's not something that was random in any way, shape or form," Bouchard said in an interview broadcast on WDIV-TV Local 4.
Beaumont Health spokesman Mark Geary issued the following statement Monday:
"We are saddened that an incident occurred in the parking lot of our Lake Orion facility. The incident did not involve any patients or staff. The sheriff's office tells us this was a private dispute between two individuals. We are proud of how our Beaumont team locked down the building as a security precaution. And, we are relieved that our patients and staff are safe."
Contact Kristen Shamus: kshamus@freepress.com. Follow her on Twitter @kristenshamus.
This article originally appeared on Detroit Free Press: 1 person shot Lake Orion Beaumont Medical Center parking lot
