Residents on edge following shooting in Brantford

Residents of a new subdivision near the city’s northwest industrial area are on edge following a Thursday afternoon shooting.

“We’re on high alert,” said one resident, a man, who spoke to an Expositor reporter through a barely opened front door of his Macklin Street home. “I don’t know what happened, I only heard about it.”

But the man, who wouldn’t identify himself, confirmed that a home on Macklin Street had been struck with a bullet. A bullet hole through a window over the front door had been covered up by a piece of cardboard.

A woman at the home, speaking through a glass window, said there was no one else in the house at the time and declined to comment further.

Police say they were called to the neighborhood to help with an ambulance call involving a 29-year-old who was injured at a Bowery Road location. Upon arrival, police found a victim suffering from a single gunshot wound who was taken to hospital with injuries that were deemed non-life threatening.

During a subsequent search of the area, police found damage to two vehicles parked on Wright Street. The damage is believed to have been caused by a firearm and the vehicles weren’t occupied at the time, police said.

Police then found a bullet hole in the front door of a Macklin Street home and damage to another home, also caused by a firearm. No one was at either home at the time of the incidents which police believe are related.

The shootings took place in a subdivision located near the city’s northwest industrial area off Oak Park Road. The subdivision is located near the Hershey Distribution Center and the new Barry Callebaut chocolate factory being built on Bowery Road.

Although some homes have been completed many others are in various stages of completion.

Residents who spoke to The Expositor on Saturday are shocked by the shooting but couldn’t provide many details.

“I don’t know what happened but I did see a lot of police over in the area where the chocolate factory is going in,” said one woman, who was out walking her dog on Saturday. “I think it all happened early afternoon.

“It was around 3 pm that the police were at the construction site.”

The woman, who moved to the area because of its proximity to the trails, said the neighborhood is usually pretty quiet.

A Macklin Street resident said he was interviewed by police but had little to say while another said he only knew what had been reported by the media. However, one resident said police remained on scene at the chocolate factory construction site all day Friday.

Police are asking anyone with information, including area residents who may have video surveillance from between 1 pm and 4 pm on Thursday to contact investigators at 519-756-7050. Those who wish to remain anonymous are asked to call Brant-Brantford Crime Stoppers at 519-750-8477 or 1-800-222-8477 or online at www.crimestoppersbb.com/submit-a-tip .

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