GREENSBORO — A shooting that police said might be gang-related left two people dead and one critically injured Saturday night on High Point Road.
Police Chief Tim Bellamy said members of MS-13, a Hispanic gang found across the United States, may have been involved.
Three Hispanic men were shot about 7:30 p.m. inside the Mexican restaurant Las Jarochitas at 3738 High Point Road, Bellamy said.
Two of the victims died at the restaurant, and the third was taken to Moses Cone Hospital. Their names were not released as of early Sunday morning.
Bellamy said there may have been two or three shooters, also Hispanic men.
After the shooting, two cars — a burgundy SUV and a white vehicle — were seen leaving the restaurant's parking lot. The burgundy SUV was involved in at least two hit-and-runs as it left the lot, Bellamy said.
One of the hit-and-run victims was taken to the hospital with non-life threatening injuries.
Dozens of people gathered outside the yellow police tape surrounding the restaurant after the shooting. Employees of the restaurant, many crying, stood nearby. Bellamy could not say if the victims were employees or customers at the restaurant.
The restaurant's door was blocked off by a blue tarp, with only police detectives and members of the Crime Scene Investigation Unit going in and out of the restaurant.
The police gang unit was also on the scene.
Bellamy said witnesses were cooperative but that most of them spoke limited English. The police department brought in a Spanish-language translator to help with interviews.
One man, who did not want to be named, said he was told by witnesses that the shooting resulted from an altercation over loud music in the restaurant. Bellamy said he could not confirm that as a motive.
Bellamy said the shootings marked the second and third homicides of the day in Greensboro.
Before noon Saturday, police discovered the body of a man at 1118 Warren St. The investigation is ongoing.
Anyone with information is asked to call the Criminal Investigation Division at 373-2255 or Crime Stoppers at 373-1000.
Contact Kavita Pillai at 373-7157 or kpillai@news-record.com
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