OAKLAND, Calif. (KRON) — One victim was shot to death outside an adult education school in Oakland Friday morning, police said. Investigators described the violence as a targeted and “very intentional crime.”
Police officers swarmed around Parker Community Resource Center on Ney Avenue and blocked off the crime scene. The center’s building is a former elementary school that now serves as the main campus for Oakland Unified School District’s Oakland adult education classes.
A second victim suffering from gunshot wounds was found at the scene and rushed to a hospital in stable condition. Both victims were adults in their 20s, police said.
Summer adult education classes were in-session Friday morning, a school district spokesperson said.
The Oakland Police Department’s new police chief, James Beere, told reporters that gunshots activated a ShotSpotter system alert just before 9 a.m.
“This is very tragic incident. It’s heartbreaking,” the police chief said. “This was not a random act. This was a very intentional crime.”
Photo: KRON4
Beere declined to comment on possible motives. The chief said he spent time with the homicide victim’s family, and “our investigators have a lot of information. We have some really good leads. I am very confident we will be able to determine the reason, and the people responsible.”
The school was placed on lockdown following the shooting.
OUSD communications director John Sasaki said, “We’re going to look at everything we can here to make sure we are doing what we can to keep guns, weapons of any kind off our campuses. Obviously this has to do with who’s involved. I will say to anyone that considers doing this, keep your weapons at home, resolve your differences peacefully. This is not the way to resolve anything.”
Police officials did not publicly release the homicide victim’s name.