North Side shooting: 5 people shot outside church funeral service in Pittsburgh
PITTSBURGH (KDKA) — Six people were injured in a shooting outside of a funeral at a church on Pittsburgh's North Side for the victim of a recent homicide, police said.
Five people were wounded in the shooting, and the sixth victim was injured as people ran from the scene. Two "people of interest" related to the shooting were detained Friday night, Pittsburgh Public Safety said.
"I'm sorry we're here to report another tragic incident," Acting Pittsburgh Police Chief Thomas Stangrecki said at a briefing near the scene on Friday afternoon.
Law enforcement swarmed the North Side's Brighton Heights area of Brighton Road, McClure Avenue, Termon Avenue and Benton Avenue after reports of gunfire shortly after noon on Friday, emergency officials said.
PHOTO GALLERY: Pittsburgh police swarm North Side after shooting outside church funeral service
ShotSpotter picked up five rounds going off at 12:04 p.m., police said. Just after, it alerted another 15 rounds going off in that area.
The Destiny of Faith Church sits at the corner of Brighton and Benton. The gunfire went off outside of the building, police said. KDKA's Jennifer Borrasso spoke with a witness who provided KDKA with a flyer from the funeral service.
The flyer shows the service was for 20-year-old John Hornezes Jr., one of the victims of the Oct. 15 shooting on Cedar Avenue, also on the North Side. Two women, who police said were innocent bystanders, were also killed in that shooting.
Police said they are still investigating the motive of Friday's shooting, but police did say they believe it was a "targeted shooting."
"Obviously, we believe there's a dispute going on, and we're going to continue to use resources," Pittsburgh Police Commander Richard Ford said.
Five of the victims are at Allegheny General Hospital. One of them is in critical condition, hospital officials said. The others at AGH are in stable condition, police said. A sixth victim is in stable condition at UPMC Children's Hospital. Sources tell KDKA-TV that the victim is a juvenile.
The victims at AGH are a 66-year-old man, a 57-year-old woman, a 27-year-old man, a 24-year-old man, and a 20-year-old man.
Pittsburgh Public Safety said that originally six people were shot but later said five people were shot and one person was injured trying to escape.
Investigators are not releasing the names of the victims at this time.
Police said they are also not releasing any information yet on potential suspects. However, they did say there was likely more than one gunman. They are looking into surveillance video from the area.
Darnell Harris was inside for his great-nephew's funeral when the gunfire erupted. He said two of his relatives were injured in the shooting.
"I just think these young boys don't care about anybody's life, not even their own," he said.
No arrests have been made. Anyone with information can call law enforcement at 412-323-7161.
"I can't reiterate enough, we need the help of everyone out there," Ford said.
