Roanoke Rapids police are investigating a second shooting which occurred in the 300 block of Franklin Street late Sunday night.
Chief Bobby Martin said in a statement this morning the shooting, in which the victim was shot in the lower back, is not believed to be related to one which occurred Thursday evening in the area.
The shooting occurred just before midnight and officers arrived to find the victim on the front porch with a gunshot wound to the lower back.
Officers had encountered the victim about 15 minutes earlier that evening while conducting foot patrols in the neighborhood.
“It was just general contact,” Martin said this morning. “The officers were doing foot patrols and trying to pick up patrols and meet some residents. It was a non-enforcement engagement.”
Martin said the victim was treated locally and then transported to another medical facility. The victim is in stable condition, he said.
Investigators have a potential person of interest in the case, the chief said in the statement.
Martin said Friday and reiterated today there is a problem in the area which the department is trying to curb. “There’s absolutely problems. We’re stepping patrols up in the area. When we’re there everything is quiet. As soon as you leave it starts ramping up. We’re doing everything we can. It’s unfortunate this happened. From what we found out, this (the Sunday night shooting) doesn’t have anything to do with narcotics that are running rampant in that area.”
Martin said there are a few drug dealers in the area. “It’s definitely got our attention. We’re going to do what we’re going to do to combat it. We’re trying to do what we can to curb the drug trade. There are people in the area who enjoy living there. With the drugs and crimes it makes a lot of them not enjoy living in that area.”
The police department is in the process of trying to identify everyone involved in the drug trade in the neighborhood. “Once we’ve got them ID’d, we’ll go from there.”
Police continue to investigate a shooting Thursday night in the neighborhood.
Officers responded to the area shortly before 9:30 p.m. Thursday and learned there had been an altercation and from that dispute shots were fired. A victim was struck in the chest area while the suspect fled the scene.
Anyone with information on either shootings is encouraged to contact the police department at 252-533-2810 or Crimestoppers at 252-583-4444.
