PORTSMOUTH, Va. — A murder investigation is underway in Portsmouth, police said.
Officers say they were called to the 1200 block of Duke Street around 10:16 a.m. Thursday. They arrived to find an adult man suffering from a fatal gunshot wound.
Neighbors said they didn’t expect the sound of gunfire on Thursday morning.
“I heard so many gunshots—it was like 20 gunshots. They were so loud I thought they were in our backyard,” said one neighbor who lives near Duke Street. “You can hear anything, no matter what time of the hour it is.”
Officers blocked off several blocks, so investigators could gather evidence.
“There [are] kids [who] come out and play football on our lawn, ten o’clock in the morning, someone [is] shooting and committing murder, like why,” said another neighbor.
Portsmouth accounts for a third of all homicides this year in Hampton Roads. This shooting marks the 16th homicide in the city, according to a spokeswoman with the Portsmouth Police Department.
While neighbors mourn another death, they want the violence to end.
“We have all these organizations, and we have a lot of things going on, but the violence is still going on; the community really needs to come together and find out what we can do to stop the violence,” a neighbor said.
There's no word on what led to the shooting or if there are any suspects at this time.
If you have any information that may help police, you're asked to call the Crime Line at 1–888-LOCK-U-UP. You can also submit a tip online at P3Tips.com.