NORFOLK, Va. — Norfolk police reported someone shot 31-year-old Todd Wilson at a gas station off East Ocean View Avenue Friday night. Wilson died at the scene.
A neighbor who lives nearby said she heard the gunshots and saw someone speed away in a car.
Now, loved ones are mourning the sudden loss of Wilson. Many have posted loving remarks about him on social media.
Some friends said Wilson tore up the football field in high school. Patrick Martin said he got to coach Wilson in his younger years.
“He was very outgoing,” Martin said. “I cannot think about anything or anyone that can say anything bad about Todd. He is a very very good person.”
Norfolk investigators couldn’t comment further on the investigation, but a spokesman for the Virginia Beach Police Department said they’ve noticed an uptick in crime at gas stations across the region.
“Unfortunately, we have had two homicides during the past year at gas stations across the city,” said Lt. Brad Wesseler.
Lt. Wesseler said people often meet up at gas stations to sell things. He said department leaders are directing police officers to keep an eye on gas stations across the area. He urges people to pay attention to their surroundings when pumping gas, especially late at night.
“We are asking our officers to be more vigilant, patrol more often, get out and interact with the community, get to know the store owners, so we can make them safer places for the community to conduct business," Lt. Wesseler said.
Norfolk police have not released a motive for this latest shooting.
“I can’t even get my words together, but this really hits home,” Martin said.
A spokesman for the Virginia Beach Police Department said police officers are also seeing more cars stolen from gas stations. He said a lot of people are leaving their cars running when they go in for a quick purchase and criminals are taking advantage of that.
13News Now reached out to police departments across Hampton Roads to see if they are noticing an uptick in violence at gas stations. Officials with the Newport News Police Department and Hampton Police Division said they have not noticed a significant increase in crime in this category.