- Virginia shooting killed at least two people and injured at least five others on the campus of the Virginia Commonwealth University
- The fatal victims were identified as 18-year-old Shawn Jackson and 36-year-old Renzo Smith
- Two people were initially taken into custody, one of which was a 19-year-old male suspect, while the second was believed to be uninvolved
A Virginia shooting resulted in the death of at least two people, a father, and son, and the injury of five others following a high school graduation ceremony on Tuesday on the campus of Virginia Commonwealth University.
In a statement, Tameeka Jackson-Smith said that the two fatal victims were her husband, 36-year-old Renzo Smith, and her son, 18-year-old Shawn Jackson. A local organization, the United Communities Against Crime, also shared the identities of the fatally shot father and son on behalf of their family.
Virginia Shooting After Graduation Ceremony
Law enforcement authorities took into custody two people, one of whom is a 19-year-old male suspect in the crime. During a news conference, Richmond's interim police chief, Rick Edwards, said the second person taken into custody was not involved in the incident, as per Yahoo News.
Police have not publicly identified the suspect, who now faces two counts of second-degree murder, said Edwards. Furthermore, he added that authorities believe the 19-year-old knew at least one of the victims he killed.
Edwards noted that Smith was found to be in attendance at the ceremony to watch his son graduate. However, police authorities have not yet publicly revealed the names of the other victims in the crime, which were all male and whose ages ranged from 14 to 58.
One of the victims was a 31-year-old male who needed to be treated for life-threatening injuries following the incident. The other four injured had wounds that were not considered life-threatening, said police.
Apprehension of a Suspect
The shooting outside the Altria Theater in Richmond prompted hundreds of people to run for their lives, many of whom were wearing graduation gowns. According to BBC, Edwards said that the scene was "obviously chaos" and added that people were scattered.
Police authorities added that a nine-year-old girl "related to the family" was struck by a moving car during the chaotic situation. Officials quickly took the child to a hospital so that she could be treated for minor injuries that she sustained.
Officials later identified the suspect as Omari Pollard, who was arraigned in court and noted that he committed the crime based on an ongoing dispute. When police apprehended the gunman, law enforcement personnel did not fire their weapons, and they could recover several guns from the scene.
In a statement during a news conference, Mayor Levar Stoney said that they would do everything they could to bring the individuals involved in the murders to justice. The Richmond Police Department later announced that there was no longer an active threat to the community following the apprehension of the 19-year-old suspect, said USA Today.
