There was a shooting in the city this afternoon.
It happened at 4:00 on Sibun Street - which is off the Vernon Street bridge. A gunman appeared on Sarstoon street - which is across the canal and opened fire at a home on Sibun Street.
Kareem Bowen known as Jimbo was shot in the thigh and was taken to the hospital where he is in stable condition.
But the situation in the neighborhood is far from stable. The shooting was the result of an ongoing gang warfare between two rival sets that are less than half a mile from each other.
Those in the area today blame police for escalating that rivalry:
Voice of: Eyewitness
"We were speaking, my cousin an a few of us. We were hanging out and talking. And all of a sudden, we noticed that gunshots were being fired at us. We didn't know who was shooting at us, or what direction it was coming from. But when we heard the shots, we ran. And after we ran, we came back after no more shots were fired. When we came back, my cousin told me that he got shot."
Jules Vasquez
"Were they aiming for Jimbo, or were they aiming at the general crowd over here?"
Eyewitness
"They were aiming at the general crowd. Jimbo was not the target that they wanted. They were targeting the whole crowd, because you know that this is 'Bak-a-Town' and that is 'Ghost Town' over there. And then, its a problem between these two, because it looks like a gang thing."
Jules Vasquez
"So do you fear for your life?"
Eyewitness
"No, I don't fear for my life. That is no problem for me."
Voice of: Sister
"I think that what happened here, is a result of what the police did last night. They took two of the Ellis Meighn sons, and dropped them off at our bridge. And the police stood by and laughed at the boys. The boys ran up the canal side like they were crazy. That's wrong. If they know that there is a rivalry with down this side, why will they drop the boys off here?"
Jules Vasquez
"You think that this event set of what happened here?"
Sister
"It had to because my brother died like 3 months now, they killed my brother up that side. Nothing came of it, we didn't get justice, and we don't want any problems."
Jules Vasquez
"Do you feel that retaliation will result from this?"
Sister
"Well, I don't know because I am not in any gang, and my brother is not in any gang either, but he has friends. And if they already killed his brother, and nothing came out of it, and they police are not doing anything, you never know what can happen. Any number can play."
Voice of: Eyewitness
"I don't know why he came and shoot here for, but he came and started something. And he doesn't know how it will end because nearly everybody saw who did it."
Bowen just came out of prison less than a month ago. His brother, Kenyon Plunkett was killed in April on Lakeview street - which is just across the way from today's shooting.
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