Police say two are dead and two injured after a shooting outside the Toyota Oakdale Theater in Wallingford late Friday night following a Meek Mill concert.
In a statement, police said they responded to a report of gun shots fired with one subject struck in the leg around 11:12 p.m. Officers on the scene determined there were four who suffered gunshot wounds, two fatally, in the parking lot outside the venue toward the end of the rapper’s performance.
Wallingford police said it appears some kind of fight led to the shooting.
Family members identified one of the men killed as 31-year-old Travis Ward of New Haven. They said the loss is devastating.
“My cousin isn’t into the streets at all. He’s not a street kid. First of all, he’s not a kid, he’s a man, you understand? And, he was coming out with his family, to celebrate his birthday,” said Stacey Ward, Travis Ward’s cousin.
They say the concert was an early birthday celebration for Ward, who would have turned 32 next Tuesday. Family members of the New Haven man say his older brother, a cousin, and two of his cousin's friends joined him last night. One of those friends, Ward's family says, was also killed in the attack.
Family members say they don’t believe Ward was the intended target.
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Police identified the second victim killed as Jaquan Graves, 20, of New Haven.
The two surviving victims were taken to hospitals with non-life-threatening injuries and have not been identified. Police do not believe those two victims were directly involved in the incident.
The Connecticut State Police Major Crime Division was called in to assist at the scene, and the police have been interviewing witnesses at the scene. It is unclear at this time if there is a suspect.
There was a hit-and-run in the parking lot at the time of the incident, and police are looking into whether that is connected.
"We’re looking into that evading vehicle. We have good information on that. We’re not sure if that was a suspect or somebody who for whatever reason just didn’t want to stop,” said Wallingford Police Lt. Cheryl Bradley.
Anyone with information is asked to contact the Wallingford Police at 203-294-2800.
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