Another fatal shooting has Lowertown on edge
Ottawa homicide detectives are investigating a fatal shooting in the same Lowertown area where another 20-year-old man was shot and killed a little more than a month ago.
Police were called to the 300 block of Murray Street near Beausoleil Drive around 8:20 p.m. Tuesday where they found two 18-yearold men injured.
Another fatal shooting in the same area claimed the life of football star Loris Tyson Ndongozi in early July.
The latest shooting was first confirmed by Ottawa paramedics who attended the scene Tuesday night, finding one man with no vital signs.
He later died at hospital.
In a news release Wednesday evening, police identified that man as Creflo Tansia, 18, of Ottawa.
Another 18-year-old man was taken to hospital in serious condition and later released.
According to a woman who said her son was among the targeted group, another group of men arrived at the housing complex — where townhouses occupy a block between Beausoleil Drive and Murray Street — wearing hooded sweatshirts low over their faces to settle a childish argument with a firearm.
“They weren't bad kids,” she said through tears. “His friend right beside him got shot.”
The gunfire startled residents and sent dozens fleeing, including children who were outside playing.
A 12-year-old on his way home from the park with a group of friends was standing outside a nearby daycare, just steps away from the shooting when it started.
“He heard a couple of gunshots,” the boy's mother said, “and everyone just kinda froze and then they heard a bunch more and all the kids started running.”
Another neighbour who witnessed the shooting said she heard at least three gunshots as she was helping her children with their homework.
At first, she thought they were fireworks, but as she looked outside her window she saw several people running fast down the street, away from an area where people were gathering around two wounded men.
“When I saw people running, I thought this must be something serious,” said the neighbour, who didn't want to be identified out of fear for her safety.
A group of people surrounded the two injured men, one of whom, the neighbour said, was shot in the neck.
“One already was in bad shape,” she said. “Another one was OK, was able to walk to the ambulance.”
Ottawa police detectives combed the ground with a metal detector Wednesday morning and placed evidence markers beyond a ring of crime scene tape. But the shooting has left scars on those who witnessed it and a lingering feeling of anger.
The mother of the 12-year-old boy who was nearby said she was incensed.
“It was not even 8:30. The park was full of kids, the streets were full of kids, everyone was just playing,” she said. “It's scary to know he was so close to something. It could have bounced off something and hit one of the kids.”
Her son is recovering after a sleepless night. He has a headache, his ears are ringing from the gunfire and he has a new feeling of fear for the neighbourhood.
“He's saying he doesn't even want to come play outside anymore,” the mother said.
Many of the neighbours who witnessed the shooting declined to be identified out of fear for their safety. They described a lingering sense of danger in the area, amplified by nearby shootings and a visible drug trade.
Kayla Wright, a mother who lives in the nearby community housing apartment complex, said she feels unsafe.
“I have to protect my child,” she said. “Where the hell are they getting the guns from?”
Yvon Michel said the shootings were becoming commonplace. “It is a dangerous area here,” he said.
The shooting comes weeks after another gun death in Lowertown.
Ndongozi, 20, a football prospect known as “Pancake” was shot and killed on the night of July 4 while playing basketball on an outdoor court at St. Anne Catholic Elementary School, not far from Tuesday's shooting.
“Crime is going up. How can I be OK?” one of the neighbours who spoke to the Citizen said.
“It's not OK because it's becoming worse. It's the second shooting within two months.”
Anyone with information on the homicide is asked to contact the Ottawa police homicide unit at 613-236-1222, ext. 5493.