PORTSMOUTH, Va. — A man is dead following an overnight shooting near Portsmouth's Dale Homes neighborhood, authorities said Saturday.
The shooting happened on Dale Drive near Interstate 264 shortly before 1:20 a.m., according to the Portsmouth Police Department (PPD).
At the scene, officers found a man suffering from what was considered to be a life-threatening gunshot injury. In a later news release, PPD announced the victim — 33-year-old Modrelle Britt — had succumbed to his injuries.
PPD named 34-year-old Antonio Collins, also known as "Knuckles," as a person of interest. Authorities did not say how Collins is connected to the shooting.
RELATED: City leaders work to fix recent history of violence in Portsmouth's Dale Homes neighborhood
PPD Chief Stephen Jenkins has previously called Dale Homes neighborhood a "challenge," with the number of calls for service continuing to climb.
Of the 155 calls PPD responded to Dale Homes between 2022 and 2023, according to public records, 31 were for calls of assault and a dozen for shots fired.
From March 2023 to March 2024, that number climbed to 548 calls overall.
Chief Jenkins said his officers and city leaders are working on solutions to address the violence, but he also says some of the responsibility has to fall on the people who live there.
"We know that folks are afraid of retaliation and intimidation, however, if you don’t come forward, you allow that stuff to fester in your community," he said.
Saturday's incident is the 22nd homicide in Portsmouth this year and it's at least the second in the Dale Homes Complex.
Darrel Redmond runs "Give Back 2 Da Block", a Portsmouth-based non-profit that tackles violence head-on. He says this most recent homicide adds to the neighborhood's collective trauma.
"I believe that the community is just losing a sense of hope... we know that this same community has been plagued by this type of violence repeatedly, and we have to take immediate action," Redmond said.
Neighbors we spoke with wouldn't go on camera due to safety concerns. Redmond said the situation is worrying.
"They're scared, that means that this is a community that actually needs a lot of help. Everybody deserves to be safe inside their own environment, and we have people out here that aren't safe and their own environment," Redmond said.
The shooting remains under investigation. Anyone with information on the shooting is urged to call the Crime Line at 1-888-562-5887 or leave an anonymous tip at P3tips.com.