Tuesday in Richmond, Virginia, a man armed with four handguns killed two people and injured five others when he fired into a crowd outside of a high school graduation ceremony, according to police.
Police said they had apprehended one suspect, a 19-year-old man who knew one of the victims, and fired at him as he emerged from the Huguenot High School commencement ceremony on the Virginia Commonwealth University campus.
In addition to other offenses, the suspect was likely to be charged with two counts of second-degree murder, interim Richmond Police Chief Rick Edwards stated at a press conference.
Edwards described the shooter’s behavior as “disgusting and cowardly,” given that his dispute appeared to be with a single individual.
“When you have a crowd like this, innocent people will be caught up in the chaos,” Edwards said.
This should have been a secure area… It is exceedingly tragic that someone chose to bring a firearm to this incident and sow fear in our community.”
The United States has become accustomed to mass shootings in schools, retail malls, and churches.
According to the Gun Violence Archive, this was the 279th mass shooting in the United States in the first 157 days of 2023, using the definition of four or more persons being shot or killed in a single incident, excluding the shooter.
Edwards stated that the deceased were men between the ages of 18 and 36. He did not corroborate WWBT’s claim that the victims were a father and sons.
Edwards also said a 31-year-old guy with life-threatening injuries and four other males ages 14, 32, 55, and 58 will survive.
In addition, a 9-year-old girl was struck by a vehicle during the ensuing chaos, and multiple others were injured in falls or suffered anxiety, according to Edwards.
The suspect fled the scene on foot and was apprehended with four handguns, three of which may have been discharged, according to the official, who emphasized that it was too early in the investigation to be certain.
