Methuen Police Hunt For Suspect After McDonald's Shooting
METHUEN (CBS) – Police have arrested a suspect after a fight led to a shooting outside of a Methuen McDonald's on Haverhill Street on Friday night.
Methuen police received a report of a physical fight with shots fired in the McDonald's parking lot around 10:30 p.m. When they arrived, they found a 20-year-old man had been shot in the abdomen and two children were in a vehicle during the altercation.
"There were two children that were on scene. Neither one was injured. We are still looking into the connection the children have to the suspect and the victim," an officer at the scene said.
After a short search, police arrested Rodney Villar, 29, in connection with the shooting.
Friday night, Methuen police asked the public to be on the lookout for Villar and to consider him armed and dangerous. A little more than a half-hour later, police said Villar had been arrested at his home in Dracut.
Methuen Police Chief Joseph Solomon said that Dracut, Lowell and state police assisted in the capture.
The unidentified victim was taken to Lawrence General Hospital in critical condition.
Police say there have been other violent crimes in that same McDonald's parking lot in the past, including a shooting in January.
