A man was wounded by gunfire and his vehicle ended up in the ocean Tuesday night at Altona Lagoon, the V.I. Police Department reported.
At 8:05 p.m., 911 dispatchers received a report from the V.I. Port Authority Police of a Jeep Liberty that was in the ocean at the lagoon with no occupants in it. Moments later the call center received a second report, this one indicating that the occupants of the vehicle had been victims of a shooting incident and that they were traveling to the Juan F. Luis Memorial Hospital.
Officers met with the shooting victim, who told them he and his girlfriend were having a meal at Altona Lagoon when two unknown men approached their vehicle and opened fire on them. The victim told the officers that he drove his vehicle into the seawater in an attempt to get away from the gunfire and that the pair exited the vehicle and swam to another area of the beach.
As the couple emerged from the ocean, the man realized he’d been shot. A passing motorist stopped to assist and drove them to the JFL emergency room. The victim sustained a single gunshot wound to the left forearm, while his girlfriend was uninjured.
Detectives and officers are continuing their investigation into this matter.
