LIBERTY, Mo. — A woman is in the hospital and a suspected shooter is behind bars on Thursday night. Shots were fired at a shopping center off of 291 near 152 Highway at about 5:30 p.m., the woman was struck behind a Dollar General.
On Friday police said the 65-year-old victim is still in the hospital in serious condition. Her 41-year-old son is the suspected shooter, charges are pending against him.
Witnesses at a nearby boutique reported hearing six to eight shots and then saw police quickly descend upon the scene. Police say a woman was shot and a man ran to the Dickey`s Barbecue across the field where he was captured and taken into custody.
Police went to someone’s home behind the shopping center in the direction the man ran to ask about what they might have seen. The shooting has the neighborhood on edge, where residents say they never really minded living behind a shopping center before now.
“This here was kind of a shocker, it was pretty close to home. We will surely be on the watch now more closely for things that could happen in the future,” Thelma Steel told FOX 4.
Neighbors added that they had worked with their HOA to try to board up holes in a fence behind the shopping center in years past, but FOX 4’s Dave D’Marko saw several gaps where that suspect may have run through, or perhaps where either of the people involved in the shooting had entered.
People working at several stores didn’t hear the gunfire. Some went out their back doors to take out the trash and found themselves in the middle of the crime scene and manhunt for the shooter.
“Just kept working what else can you do, we had no idea what the situation was, had to keep the client calm, had to stay calm myself,” Jenny Johnson, a Beauty Mart stylist, said.
“It was a pretty scary situation for us all,” Brenda Chrane said.
Police said the victim wasn`t an employee of the Dollar General, and haven’t given an update on her condition.
Employees at the salon say a car on the front side of the building was investigated by police. FOX 4 is still at the scene, we’ll have a live update during the 10 p.m. newscast.