Man killed, woman wounded at Odd Fellows cemetery shooting, Sacramento police say
A man was dead and a woman was injured after they were struck by gunfire in a shooting Friday afternoon during a funeral at the Odd Fellows Lawn Cemetery and Mausoleum in Land Park, Sacramento police said.
Officer Karl Chan, a spokesman for the Sacramento Police Department said the man was pronounced dead after he was taken to a hospital. He said the woman was hospitalized and listed in stable condition.
At 5 p.m. Friday, police officers were still looking for an unknown shooting suspect, Chan said. It was believed the shooting on the 2700 block of Riverside Boulevard took place during a funeral service around 1 p.m., but police would not confirm details.
Chan would not say whether the shots were fired at the funeral attendees, whether this was a drive-by shooting or whether detectives believe more than one shooter was involved.
“It’s all up in the air right now, we’re trying to develop those details,” Chan told news reporters gathered outside the cemetery. “We do know that the funeral was happening behind us when the shooting occurred.”
He said homicide detectives were canvassing the neighborhood and looking for witnesses, evidence and security camera video. Chan said they were in the early stages of the investigation and did not release any suspect description Friday.
“We’re looking at all angles at this point, and motive is undetermined,” Chan said.
The victims reportedly were in a vehicle that left the cemetery on their way to a hospital and found by officers about a mile away near 24th Street and Broadway, Chan said.
Police also said officers were at both scenes trying to develop a suspect description. No other details were available.
Most of the officers investigating at the shooting scene were focused in the area of Odd Fellows Lawn, which had a large section taped off about 50 yards inside the cemetery from its front gate. The next-door entrance to the Masonic Lawn Cemetery was also blocked off.
Several bystanders gathered outside the River Terrace Cleaners across the street from the cemeteries said they heard lots of gunshots before police arrived.
Friday’s shooting wasn’t the first time this year someone was killed by gunfire at a Sacramento cemetery. Sacramento State student Zarrie Allen on July 20 was visiting a gravesite nearby with friends.
Allen, 18, was at the cemetery in the 5300 block of 47th Avenue in south Sacramento shortly after 5 p.m., when an unknown suspect or suspects fired at Allen and her friends and then left the area in a car.
On Friday, a reporter asked Chan if this latest shooting means police will increase security at funerals. He said that is up to the cemetery operators, but police investigators will focus on finding anyone responsible for Friday’s shooting.
Investigators asked anyone with information about this fatal shooting to call the Sacramento Police Department at 916-808-5471 or the Sacramento Valley Crime Stoppers at 916-443-4357. Tips also can be submitted confidentially by using the P3 Tips smartphone app.
This story was originally published September 11, 2020 at 1:49 PM.
