A 19-year-old man was shot by his stepfather Friday at a restaurant in the city's Federal Hill section, Baltimore police said.
City Councilman Eric Costello, who represents the area, said the person was shot around 4 p.m. at SweetPeaz Southern Kitchen in the 1000 block of South Charles Street. The victim was taken to a local hospital. He was shot and the chest and his condition was described as serious, police said.
Detectives said the victim and his stepfather got into argument inside the restaurant sometime before the shooting. The stepfather briefly left, but later returned and shot the victim, police said.
Police are currently searching for the stepfather.
Friday afternoon's shooting in Federal Hill continues a particularly violent week in Baltimore. On Thursday, a pregnant woman and her boyfriend were gunned down in East Baltimore. Doctors were able to save the woman's baby, who is in critical condition. On Tuesday, a man armed with a semi-automatic rifle opened fire along Rose Street in East Baltimore, killing one man and wounding three others.
"It’s heavy crime, daytime. This is daytime. They’re not even scared to do crime in the daytime," said one man in Federal Hill. "It’s like the Wild, Wild West. Every man, every woman for yourself."
Around 6 p.m., officers found a 79-year-old man who had been shot in the leg at Ramsay Street and Smallwood Avenue in Southwest Baltimore's Carrollton Ridge section.
The man was taken to a hospital.
As of Friday morning, Baltimore police reported that 125 people had been killed in homicides so far this year, a 9.6 percent increase when compared with the same time period last year. Also Thursday, Baltimore police reported 252 nonfatal shootings so far this year, an 8.1 percent increase when compared with the same time period last year.
Anyone with information about the shooting is asked to call detectives at 410-396-2499 or contact the Metro Crime Stoppers tip line at 1-866-7LOCKUP.
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