Two people were seriously injured after gunfire broke out outside a Fresno nightclub during Halloween weekend, turning a late-night celebration into a violent scene.
The shooting happened at approximately 12:18 a.m. Sunday in Fresno’s Tower District, where crowds had gathered for a “zombie crawl,” a Halloween-themed bar-hopping event.
Officers in the area reported hearing nine gunshots. They soon found two victims outside MIA Nightclub suffering from gunshot wounds that were not considered life-threatening.
Police identified the suspected shooter as a 16-year-old and arrested the juvenile on suspicion of attempted murder.
A third person injured during the confrontation was also located but did not need medical attention, according to the Fresno Police Department. The two shooting victims were taken to Community Regional Medical Center and were listed in stable condition.
Investigators with the Night Detective Unit and Felony Assault Unit determined that a physical confrontation began when two groups, each made up of three people, crossed paths outside the club, police said.
Authorities said the suspect pulled out a gun during the fight and fired several shots before dropping a privately manufactured 9mm handgun at the scene and fleeing.
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The juvenile was located later that night in the nearby city of Fowler. Officers carried out an hour-long surround-and-call-out operation before taking the suspect into custody and transporting the teen to the Fresno County Juvenile Justice Center.
In a statement after the shooting, MIA Nightclub called on residents to “stand together, fight back against the violence and take our community back.”
The latest incident occurred about two weeks after 28-year-old Tyrone Miles was fatally shot outside the same nightclub. Security footage from that case reportedly showed a group arguing shortly before the deadly attack.
The Tower District also saw another shooting in September, adding to growing frustration among local business owners concerned about violence in the neighborhood.
“To see it at your front door, in a place that’s beloved by the community, to see this type of violence happen, it’s very disheartening and discouraging to the city as well as the Tower District,” Lewis Everek, owner of Everek Hospitality Group, told ABC 30 after Miles’ death.
