Shooting on Richmond’s Southside leaves one woman dead, four other people injured

RICHMOND, Va. (WRIC) — The Richmond Police Department says that five people were shot at an apartment complex on Midlothian Turnpike on Tuesday evening. One person was killed, another is in critical condition.

The victims have been identified as two adult women, two teenage girls and a 3-month-old girl. The 3-month-old is in critical condition.

Police say the person killed was one of the two adult women. The rest of the people shot were hospitalized, two have non-life-threatening injuries and two have life-threatening injuries.

Police describe the area where shots were fired as a “quad full of children.” Right now they believe the shooters were targeting a single apartment and not a person.

The Belt Atlantic apartment complex, located on Richmond’s southside, used to be called Midlothian Village Apartments. It is located across from George Wythe High School.

“Gunmen appeared in one of the breezeways and opened fire,” said Richmond Police Chief Gerald Smith. “It appears that they were targeting a particular apartment, not necessarily people or individuals, but they had no regard for the individuals that were out there.”

Smith says the shooting was a “heinous act.”

Gunfire was returned after the initial shots, currently they do not know who did this. Chief Smith is calling on people in the community to come forward with answers.

“At this time, the Richmond Police Department, parents and loved ones, would ask that anyone who knows anything to please give us a call right away because we know someone out here knows what happened, and what took place, and what the motives were, and who the shooters were,” Smith said.

Heavy police presence remained at The Belt Atlantic apartment complex in the 4000 block of Midlothian Turnpike into the night.

The Richmond Police Department gave an update on the shooting around 8:30 p.m.