Two killed, one injured in three early morning shootings in Austin
AUSTIN, Texas - Two men were killed and one person was injured in three separate shootings in Austin early Wednesday morning.
Austin Police Officer Michael Bullock said the department did not have "any specific" information indicating the three incidents were related.
"Because of the limited information that we have, right now we don’t believe this to be an immediate threat to the general public. But, because we don’t have anyone in custody we always recommend that people please be aware of your surroundings and if you see anything suspicious please contact 9-1-1 and have police come investigate." Bullock said.
Bullock says the first shooting happened around midnight on the 2100 block of Burton Drive off East Oltorf Street. Multiple people called 9-1-1 because they heard gunshots. When police arrived they found a man in the roadway. He had been shot several times. Police and Austin-Travis County EMS attempted to save the man’s life. He was pronounced dead approximately 10 minutes later.
Around 12:50 a.m. residents of the homeless encampment at East Riverside Drive and South Pleasant Valley Road say several shots were fired into a section of the camp that parallels Burger King.
Police were called to the area because multiple people reported hearing gunshots. When police arrived Bullock said they could not locate a crime scene or a victim, so they canvassed the camp. Inside a tent they found a man who had been fatally shot.
A resident of the camp who goes by the name "Montana" said her friend nicknamed "Stack" was killed in the shooting.
"It’s a dang shame. He didn’t deserve it, that’s for sure." she said, adding Stack was a father and one of, if not the oldest person living at the camp. She said other residents often referred to him as the "garbage man."
"He was the man always cleaning up everything, trying to change everything, everybody. Motivate everybody and drive everybody forward. Real huge loss for this Island." she explained.
Wednesday Montana helped set up a memorial for Stack at the encampment. She left him a note on €5 it read, "hope heaven has a smoking section. I’ll meet you there, love Montana,"
She also left a lighter at the memorial "Just in case if we meet, he doesn’t have one." she laughed.
Other camp residents left out stuffed animals, candles, flowers, a cross and a balloon. "It’s all just a piece of him, all the way down to the different colors of the flowers because the man, he was the pot of gold at the end of the rainbow in a weird sense because, man, no matter where he went, he was good with everybody." Montana said.
Montana and two other camp residents told FOX 7 Austin two people were injured in the shooting that killed Stack. Austin Police said they could only confirm "1 deceased person."
Around the same time Stack was killed, Austin Police say another person was shot about 12 miles south behind the Cinemark South Park Meadows. Wednesday morning Bullock told reporters "[The victim is] in stable condition right now. At this point in time I don’t have any indication that it is life-threatening."
Wednesday Bullock said Austin Police were still working to identify and locate those responsible for the three incidents. He asked anyone with information to contact the department at: 512-477-3588 or 512-472-TIPS.
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