A spate of gun violence and robberies has rock the city of Richmond in the first week of the New Year, as detailed by the Richmond Police Department's Patrol Activity Report. On the very first day of 2023, officers were called to the 4200 block of Center Avenue where a shooting suspect reportedly fired at a victim who was trying to escape by car, fortunately unharmed.
That same day, the ShotSpotter system, which detects gunfire, alerted authorities to the 4800 block of Hartnett Avenue. Richmond officers found numerous bullet casings, though no victims were present, and the property seemed untouched. Later, a shooting on the 100 block of South 33rd Street left one individual hospitalized in stable condition after being shot near his vehicle, the police said.
Violent thefts further marred the week, with a woman reporting on January 3 that her car window was smashed and her purse stolen at the corner of 23rd and Macdonald Avenue. That same day, two individuals suffered gunshot wounds to their lower extremities on the 1500 block of Ohio Avenue, echoing the sounds of bullets with the violence they carried.
In another robbery on January 5, two suspects took a woman's deposit bag after a struggle in the 4300 block of MacDonald Avenue. In a separate episode on the 1700 block of Ohio Avenue, suspects assaulted a man and discharged a firearm into the air, with the police arriving after the assailants had fled. In a similar trend, two suspects threatened victims with a knife, leaving with a purse at the 900 block of MacDonald Avenue. Richmond authorities announced these investigations were ongoing, with no suspects apprehended at the scene.
Meanwhile, car thefts presented another challenge for Richmond's law enforcement. Officers recovered stolen vehicles on January 4 and 7, confirming stolen from Richmond and nearby cities, respectively. Both suspects were arrested without further incident.
