THIBODAUX, La. (WGNO) — Seven people were shot and two were injured as the crowd dispersed after a shooting in Thibodaux shooting Sunday night.
Officials with the Lafourche Parish Sheriff’s Office (LPSO) said it happened in the 300 block of Hyland Drive in the Marydale neighborhood around 9:30 p.m.
A family who lives on Hyland Drive says they were hosting a party to celebrate their relative’s high school graduation when the unthinkable happened.
“Everybody was having a good time, and everybody just heard gunshots,” Sam Pharagood, the aunt of the high school graduate, said. “We didn’t see no arguments. We didn’t see none of that. We just heard gunshots.”
The family says more than 200 people attended the party, most of them in the street, when the shots were fired.
The hosts and some partygoers say they didn’t know the shooters.
“They had a song playing, so I guess that made the person feel like that, so he just started shooting the air,” partygoer Amyria Branch said. “Everybody just took off running. I was scared for my life because I have a daughter, and I gotta be here for her.”
Seven people were wounded by the gunfire, five of which were female. Two young women were also hurt as the crowd was dispersing. The ages of the victims range from 17 to 25.
They were all taken to a hospital for treatment. Lafourche Parish Sheriff Craig Webre says one person remains hospitalized but is expected to be okay.
Investigators recovered a handgun with DNA evidence at the scene. Webre said it will be sent to ATF for analysis. He also said evidence indicates that there may have been two shooters.
“We have every reason to believe that the majority of the people there were legitimately socializing in a forum, and unfortunately, at least 2 or more individuals with firearms and without any regard to the safety of themselves and the people around them shot into this crowd,” Webre said.
So far, investigators have not identified the suspects nor a motive but have some leads and are confident they will crack this case.
“Obviously, there are people who know things and who have seen things, and we want to use this press conference as an opportunity to appeal to the public, in particular people who may have been at this event and members of the Marydale community, to let them know that we’re unified in our willingness and our commitment to keeping this community safe,” Webre said.
We will continue following this developing story and report updates as they are available.
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