Gunfire erupted early Saturday morning at an apartment complex in Prince George County, sending witnesses scrambling to report seeing multiple people running from the scene, according to police. Officers were called to the 4000 block of Anne Terrace at Puddledock Place Apartments after reports of shots fired, and found a vehicle struck by gunfire once they arrived. No injuries were reported.
Investigators say people ran from the area as the shooting unfolded, though it remains unclear whether any of those seen fleeing were involved in the gunfire itself. As WTVR reports, the investigation is ongoing and police have not announced any arrests. The outlet described the story as still developing as of Saturday afternoon.
Police are asking anyone with information to call the Prince George County Police Department at (804) 733-2773. Tips can also go to Crime Solvers at (804) 733-2777, or be submitted anonymously through the P3 Tips app or at www.p3tips.com, per the same account.
A Complex With a Troubled History of Gunfire
Saturday's shooting is not an isolated event at the 4200 block of Anne Terrace. Just over three months earlier, on June 27, 2026, Prince George County police responded to a shooting at the same complex in which a 19-year-old man was injured and transported to Bon Secours Southside Medical Center with non-life-threatening injuries, according to a Prince George County Police Department post. Two suspects were arrested in that case on charges including felony malicious wounding.
The pattern stretches back further. In April 2023, police arrested a 16-year-old resident after shots were fired into two apartment doors and a breezeway in the same block, obtaining a search warrant and detention order before the arrest, according to a Prince George County Police Department statement. And in August 2017, officers recovered 13 cartridge cases after gunfire struck a Puddledock Place apartment building near two sleeping children, though no injuries were reported in that early-morning incident.
New Police Chief, Longstanding Affordable Housing Development
The shooting comes just months after a leadership change atop the police department. Chief John Leach, a 28-year veteran of the department with 33 years total in law enforcement, was appointed to the role on July 24, 2026, taking over after longtime Chief W. Keith Early retired on July 1, according to the county's official website. The Prince George County Police Department has operated as an independent municipal agency since July 1, 1995, when it separated from the local Sheriff's Office, making Prince George one of nine Virginia counties with both a police department and a sheriff's office.
Puddledock Place Apartments, built in 2014, is an 84-unit apartment complex offering two- and three-bedroom units. The property has also faced administrative troubles in recent years; in September 2024, local outlet 8News reported that authorities opened an embezzlement investigation after multiple tenants received eviction notices for unpaid rent despite having made their payments, with several residents saying they received five-day notices alleging roughly $4,000 in missing rent.
Community Policing Event Set Days After Shooting
In an unrelated scheduling twist, Puddledock Place is set to host an official National Night Out block party on October 6, just days after the shooting, as part of the county's annual community policing event aimed at building neighborhood ties with police, per the county's website. The county's most recent published crime data, from its 2021 Annual Report, showed violent Group A offenses rose 1% from the prior year while less serious Group B offenses climbed 13%.
No arrests connected to Friday's shooting have been announced, and it remains unclear whether the vehicle struck by gunfire belonged to a resident.
