Shooting at Charlotte shopping center started with car deal on Facebook, police say
A car ad on Facebook led to a shooting that critically injured one person a southwest Charlotte shopping center, police said Wednesday.
The shooting happened around 10:30 a.m. Tuesday in the Berewick Town Center parking lot off Steele Creek Road, just south of Interstate 485.
Charlotte-Mecklenburg Police, in a news release, said Tan Nhat Tran, 20, met with a person to sell a Dodge Charger that he had listed on Facebook Marketplace. Tran pulled out a handgun during the meeting, CMPD said on Twitter.
The potential buyer attempted to flee in a truck, but Tran clung to the passenger side and shot him in the abdomen, police said. The truck sped into the shopping center’s parking lot, where it hit at least one parked car and damaged another, according to CMPD.
The victim wrestled the gun away from Tran, who fled to a nearby Hampton Inn & Suites, police said. Tran was arrested outside the hotel.
Video obtained by The Charlotte Observer shows Tran and the shooting victim struggle next to a blue Chevrole Tahoe SUV. The victim pleads for help from witnesses, the video shows. After a Charlotte firefighter pulls the victim to safety, a third individual runs to the SUV, grabs a gun and chases Tran.
CMPD did not release information on the third person.
The Charger was reported stolen out of Alabama, police said.
Tran is charged with “assault with a deadly weapon inflicting serious injury” and “possession of a stolen motor vehicle.”
CMPD have not provided an incident report.
This story was originally published October 5, 2022 at 6:00 PM.
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