BANGOR, Maine — A Bangor shooting in broad daylight along Union Street in which two people were hurt is being actively investigated, and no arrests have been made, police said Tuesday.
It happened at about 11:45 a.m. in the area of 1702 Union St., about 600 feet north of Sprague's Nursery & Garden Center. Police initially listed the location of the shooting as that of the garden center, but later corrected it.
"Please expect police activity in that area," the department tweeted. "This is a developing situation - please avoid the area – use an alternate route."
Police said a 911 caller reported gunfire at the property. NEWS CENTER Maine spoke with the man whose son made that call. He said he and his son were working nearby at Sprague's when they heard the gun shots. He said his son went into the home to administer first aid to one of the victims before the ambulance arrived.
"We heard two or three shots," said Chris Langlois. "We know exactly what shots are and we went down and peaked through the arborvitaes and you could see a commotion at the truck and someone yelled, 'I can't believe you did this.' What that meant, I don't know."
"We arrived on scene and located one male victim and we believe there is another victim related to this incident that was found in a different location," said Bangor Police Department Sgt. Wade Betters, during a brief press conference across from the Union Street address.
Three miles away, a police presence could be seen in the area of 40 Everett St. Police were seen taking photos and talking to residents, and a white Ford Fusion with what appeared to be blood on it was towed away from the property.
Police said the two scenes – Union and Everett streets – were related, but wouldn't take questions as to why the white car was being towed from the scene.
Lt. Tim Cotton said a male victim ended up at the Everett Street property and was taken away by ambulance. The extent of his injuries were unknown.
Additionally, nearly a quarter-mile further down Union Street, a police presence could be seen outside of The Greenworks Landscaping at 1786 Union St.
"We brought a K-9 unit in, in an attempt to track people that may have recently left this residence," said Betters of the 1702 Union St. address.
Neighbors who witnessed the events told NEWS CENTER Maine they saw a man walk out of the woods near 1786 Union St. with his hands behind his head, and later saw officers walking out of the woods with a "large gun."
"I saw a guy come out of the woods, like this, both hands in the air, and then he tried to run," gestured 11-year-old Dev-On Miller, who lives across the street from this wooded area.
At first, Miller thought the sound from the shooting may have been coming from his video game.
"I was thinking it was my game and then I found out it wasn't," said Miller.
Police detained that man for a few hours in the afternoon and did confirm he was at the Union St. home at the time of the shooting, but eventually let him go without charging him with any crime.
However, police are assuring Miller and other members of the public Tuesday night that this incident is not believed to be a random act of violence.
"We believe the people involved were known to each other so we don't believe there's anyone posing a threat to any random person or anything at this time," added Betters. "We have a lot of work to do to try to figure out the reasons why this would've happened and ultimately get the people that were victimized by it the immediate care that they need."
Both victims were brought by ambulance to a Bangor area hospital for treatment. Their exact conditions are not known Tuesday night.
Police do not have anyone in custody and no one has been charged with this double shooting Tuesday.