One person was killed and one injured in a targeted drive-by shooting on Prendergast Avenue Friday afternoon.
Jamestown Police say the incident happened just before 1:00 p.m. in the 800 block of Prendergast. 35-year-old Jesus Batista Perez was pronounced dead at the scene with the other victim being transported to UPMC Chautauqua before being flown to Hamot Medical Center for treatment.
The incident led to Jamestown Public Schools temporarily putting all school buildings under a temporary lockout Friday afternoon
Police say the vehicle suspected to be involved in the drive-by shooting appears to be a black four-door Toyota sedan with a New York registration, a sun roof, a tinted license plate cover on the front of the vehicle, and possibly a chrome gas cap.
Jamestown Mayor Eddie Sundquist, at a press conference Friday, said they’ve seen an uptick in violence in the city, “Which has been consistent with the rest of the country. This is very concerning and our Police Department has seized more and more illegal drugs and guns this year alone. I want to assure our residents that these incidents are overwhelmingly targeted and predominantly related to outside actors coming into our city.”
Council President Tony Dolce said a city-wide forum will be held the week after Labor Day in September, “I’ve asked the Police Chief to come in and also the Director of Development to talk about neighborhood issues, housing issues, as well as public safety issues. And giving the public the chance to come and ask questions and get answers from either council people, from the administration, from the Police Department, from the Department of Development, to get more of a hands-on and feel for what’s going on out there, what can be done, and what help citizens can do, what they can do to help us.”
Dolce said a location still needs to be determined for the forum but it will not be held in City Hall.
Police Chief Tim Jackson said that when it comes to how people can help keep neighborhoods safe, they should call police any time they see something out of the ordinary, “They know their neighborhoods better than we do because they live there. So whenever they see something out of the ordinary, do not hesitate to call us.”
Anyone with information regarding the incident is asked to call the Jamestown Police Department at 716-483-7537 or the Jamestown Police Department Tip Line at 716-483-8477. All tips are confidential.
Chautauqua Resident says
“they’ve seen an uptick in violence in the city, “Which has been consistent with the rest of the country.” Correction… is consistent with states and cities run by Democrats.