Death toll rises in mass shooting outside Miami banquet hall as third victim dies

This is breaking news and will be updated when new information is available.

A third person shot in the mass shooting outside El Mula Banquet Hall has died, the Miami Herald has learned.

The woman died Thursday, four days after she was shot in the head outside the venue hosting a rap concert early Sunday morning. She was among 21 people wounded when three masked gunmen opened fire on the crowd outside the banquet hall.

Miami-Dade police on Thursday night identified her as Shankquia Lechelle Peterson, 32.

Two men already identified, Desmond Owens and Clayton Dillard III, both 26, died Sunday morning.

Miami-Dade Police Director Alfredo “Freddy” Ramirez said in a tweet, “No family should have to suffer such loss. We are working around the clock relentlessly to bring these killers to justice.”

Miami-Dade County Mayor Daniella Levine Cava also offered her deepest condolences to Peterson’s family on Twitter.

Miami-Dade police homicide detectives have been working furiously to try and identify the men who opened fire on El Mula, 7630 NW 186th St., early Sunday morning. Surveillance video shows the crowd scattered in panic, as people crumpled to the ground wounded, puffs of dust exploding in the air from bullets hitting the walls.

It was one of a string of high-profile shootings across Miami-Dade County, leading police chiefs to launch an initiative, “Operation Summer Heat,” designed to combat gun violence during the coming summer months. Police have not said if they have identified suspects or a motive, although law enforcement sources have said they are investigating possible social-media feuds involving the local rappers who hosted the show.

This story was originally published June 3, 2021 at 5:12 PM with the headline "Death toll rises in mass shooting outside Miami banquet hall as third victim dies."