A 30-year-old man arrived at a Wilmington-area hospital with a gunshot wound after a shooting in the city. Police say he is in stable condition, but how he got from the scene of the shooting to the hospital, and who fired the shot, remain open questions.
According to First State Update, the shooting happened at approximately 6:25 p.m. in the 100 block of South Franklin Street. The circumstances surrounding the shooting remain under investigation, and police have not released information about a possible suspect.
Detective With a Busy 2026 Caseload Is the Investigator
Detective Ryan Kilmon is the investigator in the case. Kilmon has had a packed year of violent crime cases, including a July attempted murder investigation involving a fireworks attack and a May shooting investigation in West Center City, according to First State Update's earlier reporting on the Criminal Investigations Division's caseload.
That May case was also referenced in Hoodline's prior coverage of two shootings in one day in late September, which noted Kilmon's earlier assignment to that West Center City case. Police are asking anyone with information about Saturday's shooting to contact Detective Kilmon at (302) 576-3624 or Delaware Crime Stoppers at 1-800-TIP-3333. Tips can also be submitted online at delawarecrimestoppers.com.
A Street With a Violent History
South Franklin Street has been the site of fatal gun violence before. A New Castle County grand jury indicted a Newark man in December 2015 for a May 2010 shooting on the 600 block of South Franklin Street that left one man dead, according to a release from State of Delaware News. The case was handled by the Delaware Department of Justice Homicide Unit and the Wilmington Police Department's Cold Case Unit, and witness testimony played a role in that homicide investigation.
Delaware Crime Stoppers offers anonymous tipsters cash rewards of up to $1,000 for information leading to an arrest in violent crime cases, through an online portal and a toll-free hotline. That incentive structure is often the difference-maker in cases like this one, where police have not publicly identified a suspect.
Shooting Comes Amid a Volatile Stretch for Wilmington
Saturday's shooting adds to a string of gun violence incidents that have rattled Wilmington in recent weeks. Hoodline previously reported on a triple shooting near 24th and Washington earlier this month, part of what has been described as a violent fall for the city. Hoodline reported nine shooting incidents in a single month and public meetings held by the Office of Community Safety in its coverage of a teen shot in the leg during that surge.
The recent spike stands in contrast to the city's broader multi-year trend. Hoodline reported that Wilmington's 2025 figures showed a 20% decline in homicides and a 21% decline in shooting incidents, the lowest annual number of shooting incidents since 2003. State leaders have also moved on the issue: Governor Matt Meyer established the Office of Gun Violence Prevention and Community Safety in 2025.
For now, the man injured on South Franklin Street is recovering, and investigators are still working to determine exactly what led to the gunfire. Anyone with information is urged to come forward through Detective Kilmon or Delaware Crime Stoppers.
