SAN DIEGO (KGTV) -- A man was killed and a gunman remained on the loose following an early-morning shooting in downtown San Diego’s Gaslamp Quarter.
San Diego police said the deadly shooting occurred at around 1:55 a.m. in the 500 block of Island Avenue, near Fifth Avenue.
Several officers investigating another nearby shooting responded and arrived to find “several citizens rendering aid to a male on the sidewalk. The officers took over first aid and realized the man had sustained trauma to his upper body,” SDPD officials said.
The shooting victim, described as a white or Hispanic male age 25-30, was rushed to an area hospital but died from his injuries.
SDPD Homicide Unit detectives are investigating the incident, and police said they have initially learned the victim “had been involved in verbal altercation with the suspect. The dispute escalated and several people began physically fighting. It is unclear if the victim was involved in the physical altercation. During the fight, the suspect produced a handgun and fired several gunshots, striking the victim. The suspect then got into a 4-door sedan with at least two other companions. The vehicle fled the scene.”
The suspected shooter was described by police as a Black male last seen without a shirt and wearing gray shorts.
About 15 minutes prior to the Gaslamp shooting, officers had responded to a drive-by shooting a short distance away in the East Village.
In that incident, police said two people were detained after shots rang out on Seventh Avenue and Market Street. Officers also recovered a handgun near Eighth Avenue and Island Avenue.
No one was struck by gunfire in the East Village shooting.
As of early Monday morning, it was unclear if the two shootings were linked.
