BARTOW, Fla. (WFLA) – A vehicle was hit by a spray of bullets while driving through a four-way intersection in what appears to be a random shooting, Bartow police said.
“We want to make sure that we find these people and we bring them to justice,” said Bartow Police Chief Bryan Dorman.
A man was driving south on Wilson Avenue at approximately 2:24 a.m. on Nov. 6 when he stopped at a stop sign at Church Street.
“At that time, a vehicle drove up next to him on his driver side, fired several rounds, shots at him which ended up striking his vehicle,” said Chief Dorman.
Police are not releasing how many bullets hit the vehicle or where they hit.
The driver of the vehicle that was shot at drove around the corner to the police station to report what happened.
“It’s very, very unusual in our quaint city of Bartow for us to have a shooting like this. Luckily for all the parties involved, no one was hit, no one was injured but it’s very, very concerning for us,” said Chief Dorman.
All signs point towards the shooting being random, officials say.
“Is it possible this was a road rage incident?” asked News Channel 8’s Staci DaSilva.
“That’s still under investigation. That’s a part of the investigation,” said Chief Dorman.
On Tuesday, police released an image of a 2015-2018 Mitsubishi Mirage. Its driver is considered a person of interest who may have valuable information in this case.
It is unknown if the vehicle is directly connected to the shooting.
While concerning, police say, it’s a situation that could have been much worse.
“Any shooting where you’re shooting at someone, whether it hits your ground or above your head, if someone’s aiming at you or directly shooting at you, it’s definitely dangerous for the victim,” said Chief Dorman.
Anyone with information is urged to contact Detective Riley at 863-534-5041.
