CBS47 was first on the scene of a shooting that left one man dead in Hanford. It happened in the parking lot of Rite Aid on the corner of Lacey and 11th, there were dozens of people in the area. This is the first homicide of the year in the City of Hanford.
"I heard four gunshots in a row, it was pretty loud. I was walking to the store and it's like, close to home it's pretty scary," said Ashely Thompson, who lives nearby.
Police say a Hispanic male, in his 30's or 40's was shot outside of Rite Aid and died at Adventist Medical Center in Hanford. "We suspect it might be gang related but we're still investigating that," said Capt. Parker Sever, with the Hanford Police Department. They are not releasing the description of the shooter who got away. A suspicious car was seen leaving the area, investigators aren't sure if anyone else was in the vehicle.
Witnesses say it appears the victim's family saw the shooting, police could not confirm that. "And seen a little girl crying. I don't know if it was his daughter or what but she was like, screaming," said Thompson.
There are many shops and restaurants near that intersection and the shooting happened around 5:40 p.m. Monday evening, when most people are leaving work. Police say it's lucky no one else was hurt. "This is one of the busiest intersections in Hanford, so you have a lot of people present, a lot of potential for somebody else to also get hit in the cross fire," said Capt. Sever.
"When things like this happen right in the middle of where everybody is, it's kind of, there's no lines drawn of where bad things happen and where good things stay," said Shane Lowe, a Rite Aid customer.
The management at Rite Aid said they could not comment on the shooting, the store remained open through their normal business hours.