CHARLESTON, W.Va. — A hail of gunfire in eastern Kanawha County early Friday left a man dead in the street and a woman seriously injured in a nearby vehicle.
The Kanawha County Sheriff’s Department said Christopher “Snacks” Carey, 27, of Rand, was found lying in the middle of Starling Drive and pronounced dead at the scene.
Deputies said Latisha Crawford, 28, of Rand, suffered three gunshot wounds and was found a block away in a wrecked car.
Witnesses who called 911 around 5:15 a.m. reported more than 30 shots fired, with people and vehicles fleeing the scene.
“This wasn’t something that stayed in one place,” said Cpl. Brian Humphreys, spokesperson for the sheriff’s department. “With a moving vehicle and then suspects fleeing, there was a lot going on and the crime scene is not just in one location even. It’s spread out over blocks.”
Deputies confirmed multiple weapons were used, but Humphreys said it was not an active shooter situation as of late Friday morning.
“The violence occurred. The violence is over with. We’re looking for people who were involved in this,” he said on MetroNews “Talkline.”
Evidence was being collected from Starling Drive while witness interviews continued.
“While there’s a lot of information out there, there’s also a lot of misinformation that gets put out there,” Humphreys said. “Right now, the detectives and the other deputies who are working this are trying to comb through that, sort through it and make sense out of it. It’s not an easy task.”
As the search for the shooter or shooters continued, Belle Elementary School, Carver Career Center, DuPont Middle School and Malden Elementary School remained closed.
It was a precautionary move, said Humphreys, who added that no incidents happened on school property and no students were involved in the shootings. The decision was based on the safety of schoolchildren waiting for school buses or being taken to the school during the ongoing investigation.
Humphreys said deputies arrested a man on various charges as they conducted their investigation but the charges were not directly connected to the shooting. James Daugherty, 20, of Charleston, is charged with fleeing, drug possession and carrying a concealed weapon.
Anyone with information about the shootings can contact the Kanawha County Sheriff’s Department at 304-357-0169. Anonymous tips can also to be sent through the department’s website at www.kanawhasheriff.us.