Double shooting in East Oakland injures 2

OAKLAND -- Police in Oakland reported a shooting that injured two people Friday afternoon, the latest in a string of recent gun violence.

The shooting happened shortly after 2:15 p.m. on the 3900 block of Masterson Street in the Redwood Heights neighborhood of East Oakland.

Police said officers arrived to find one gunshot victim and provided treatment until medics arrived. Officers later learned a second victim had arrived at a local hospital. The status of both victims was not known as of 4:30 p.m. Friday.

Witnesses or anyone with information were asked to contact the police department's Felony Assault Unit at (510)238-3426.

The shooting caps a violent month in the city and comes two days after six people were hurt in a shooting at a school in East Oakland. In the last two weeks of September, at least nine people have been killed in separate shootings across the city.

In the wake of the recent surge of deadly violence, Chief LeRonne L. Armstrong said during a Zoom call this week with reporters that he has assigned additional officers to patrol areas of the city where "gangs congregate for retaliatory shootings."

"It's hard to say which recent homicides were connected to gang violence, but we have information to believe that some of these homicides are likely connected to gang violence," Armstrong said on the call.

Although homicides are down slightly over last year, Armstrong also has added eight officers permanently to the Criminal Investigation Division.