PORTSMOUTH, Va. (WAVY) — A man died after being shot by a convenience store employee Thursday afternoon on High Street in Portsmouth, police said.
Police said the shooting took place in the 2400 block of High Street around 2:25 p.m. when 27-year-old Rahsaan Nixon went into the Essex Food Store on High Street and began stealing merchandise.
When officers arrived, they found a man, later identified as Rahsaan Nixon, who had been shot. Video of the scene showed crime scene tape outside the Essex Food Store.
Store employees told officers that the shooting took place after an altercation with a man who tried to take items from the store, police said. Police Chief Stephen Jenkins said that when Nixon started stealing merchandise Thursday, the store employee opened fire on him.
“I just came in, and I heard them shooting,” said a man 10 On Your Side spoke with Thursday who asked not to be identified. “That’s it. I thought they were firecrackers.”
Nixon was taken to a local hospital, where he later died as a result of his injuries.
“He tried to rob the store the night before, and he came back the next day to do what he did not do Wednesday night,” said a man 10 On Your Side met in the store parking lot Friday. “He tried to rob the place. … I don’t know if he succeeded, but he tried to rob the place, so when he comes back on Thursday, he gets killed.”
Police did not confirm the Wednesday confrontation, but the man who was there Thursday recalled that “all those shots, I come out and find the guy was dead. I think it was stupid. Why was he trying to rob a place one night and come back and hit the same spot again? He has got to know he is going down.”
10 On Your Side reached out to the store owner, but that person has not called back. However, when the incident took place, people were in the parking lot.
“I was here, and I thought, ‘Oh man.’ It was scary,” one person said. “My [friend] was walking his kid out here when shots were fired. He was terrified.”
Portsmouth Police said its Major Crimes Unit has started a criminal investigation following the shooting. No charges have been filed in the case at this time.
Jenkins said in an update Friday afternoon that it is “unfortunate that violence continues to afflict communities nationwide, even during festive occasions like the Fourth of July, and Portsmouth is no exception.”
Jenkins also referenced another shooting that took place on Water Street late Thursday, which is also still under investigation. Police have issued an arrest warrant for 47-year-old Randall Bagley in that case.
It is clear the Essex Food Mart takes precautions, as it has caged windows to prevent break-ins.
“It’s Portsmouth,” the person said. “It is a bad area, you know what I mean? I mean, what are you going to do?”
Anyone with information about the incident can contact the Portsmouth Police Investigations Bureau at 757-393-8536 or call the Crime Line at 1-888-LOCK-U-UP.
