Thursday, 4:30 PM
Five injured in Boston violence
Michael Naughton Globe correspondent
and David Abel Globe Staff
Five people were injured, one critically, in separate incidents involving violence less than two hours apart in Boston late Monday.
The first incident occurred at about 7:40 p.m. Three men were injured, one critically, when they were shot, just as adults, children and other community members made their way in and out of the busy Dorchester YMCA across the street and only yards away.
The victims, who were not identified by police, were standing near a car at the corner of Washington and Armandine streets when the shots were fired, police and witnesses said. One victim was shot multiple times and was in critical condition last night at Boston Medical Center.
The other two victims were shot once each. One was taken to Boston Medical Center and the other to Brigham and Women's Hospital, police said. All of the men were in their mid-20s to early 30s, according to police.
Authorities said a number of people fled the area at the time of the shooting and they were searching for at least one suspect last night, but they did not release a description. They said the suspect or suspects may have fled in a dark-colored station wagon. No gun was recovered. Police said they did not know whether the shots had been fired from a car.
The second incident happened at 9:24 p.m.on Marion Street in East Boston. One man was shot in the chest and another was stabbed or struck in the head during a dispute that led to the incident, police said. Both men, who police said were in their mid 20s, were taken to Massachusetts General Hospital with injuries not considered to be life threatening.
It was not clear whether it was a conflict between the two men or they were attacked, police said.
About 40 minutes after the shooting, police Commissioner Edward F. Davis arrived at the scene and spoke with officials. Police Superintendent John Gallagher, who was also present, said the department urges anyone who witnessed the shooting would come forward.
"As much as we like to think we have all of these eyes out there, it's not enough. We need the people in the community," he said. "We want to put a stop to this. We need everyone's help to put a stop to it."
Before Monday night, there had been 62 nonfatal shootings in Boston this year; at the same time last year there had been 100. But 17 people have been killed in Boston this year, compared to 15 at this time last year.
