Two Killed in Shooting Near Mosque in California
Members of the center noted that the men were taking a break to get food after prayer at the mosque.
The Oakland Police Department said it initially received an alert about multiple shots being fired just before 7:45 p.m. from a ShotSpotter near Telegraph and 31st avenues. The shooting occurred near a food market and Layalina Restaurant. At the scene, officers found two men, ages 27 and 59, with gunshot wounds, the department said. A 19-year-old man drove himself to a local hospital with non-life-threatening injuries, police said.
Members of the Oakland Islamic Center community told SFGATE that the two deceased men were among the nearly 100 people who had come to the mosque for prayer and to share a community dinner.
“People are very shocked. At this moment, we were sitting down to break our fast," Hatim Nasser, a member of the center, told SFGATE over the phone. "Then some people decided to go to the store."
Opened in 1990, the Oakland Islamic Center is a gathering place for the Muslim community, offering classes and a place for prayer, according to its website.
Only 45 minutes after the double homicide on Telegraph Avenue, a woman was shot and killed at East 20th Street and 23rd Avenue, police said. The two incidents appear to be unrelated, the department said at the press conference.
Police have not released names of the victims in either incident. The motives for the shootings are under investigation, police said.
With the three recent deaths, Oakland has seen 90 homicides since the start of the year. At this time last year, Oakland had 97 homicides, the police department said.
Source: sfgate.com
