PETERSBURG, Va. – A Petersburg church held a special prayer service after a triple shooting killed one woman and left two other people injured Saturday afternoon.
The scene unfolded at the Petersburg ArtistSpace Lofts along Perry and Brown streets around 12:15 p.m.
The woman was carrying groceries when she was gunned down walking into the apartment building where she lived, sources told CBS 6 senior reporter Wayne Covil. The two others who were wounded were taken to area hospitals.
Gillfield Baptist Church, which is located across the street from the apartment complex where the violence happened, held a special time of prayer for family and neighbors.
Church members wanted to show support for the victim's family members, friends and neighbors who experienced the tragedy.
"It's just tough because I have three girls and it could have been either one of my kids at a young age like that," Petersburg native Ronnie Lanier said. "The city needs to pull together — or the nation needs to pull together — about gun violence. And we just have to do something about this."
Man heard hail of gunfire before woman was killed, 2 other people injured
One witness told Covil he was driving down the street when he heard a hail of gunfire.
When the man made it to Brown Street, he said a woman lying with groceries beside her at the entrance of the apartment building.
“The windows were shot out in front of the building," the man said. “I was told she was carrying the groceries inside."
Covil said that witness told him he became scared because the crowd "got bigger and bigger."
“They threw a sheet over her and I guess another young lady was holding her," the man recalled.
Another witness said her heart went out to the the victim's family and friends.
“I think about her family, I think about if it was my child laying out there, how I would feel," she said. "The thoughts that would be running through my head.”
As word of the shooting and young woman's death spread, the crowd grew.
“Everybody was running around, everybody was trying to fight the police, they were trying to fight each other," the man recalled. "Police were running after some guys. It was really, really chaotic.”
If you have information that could help detectives, call Petersburg Police at 804-732-4222 or Petersburg/Dinwiddie Crime Solvers at 804-861-1212 or text the keyword pdcash followed by the tip and send to 274637.
This is a developing story, so anyone with more information can email newstips@wtvr.com to send a tip.
