Detectives are investigating a Wednesday night robbery that
ended in gunshots, critically wounding one 21-year-old Gilroy man
in an alley behind Gurries Drive.
Gilroy – Detectives are investigating a Wednesday night robbery that ended in gunshots, critically wounding one 21-year-old Gilroy man in an alley behind Gurries Drive.
Shawn Walker was hanging out in his garage with two teen friends about 9:45pm Wednesday when three men barged in and “pocket-checked them,” said friend Robby Silva, 18. The robbers stripped the three friends of cash, then shot Walker and fled on foot, running eastbound through the alley. No one else was injured.
“My dad was upstairs laying in bed, when it happened,” Silva said. “He said the gunshots sounded like someone hit a piece of wood, hard and flat.”
When Silva’s father found him, Walker was in the garage, slumped against a washing machine. One teen screamed, “Call 911!” Police said Walker was hit in the midsection, but could not specify how many bullets struck him, nor how many shots were fired. Silva, however, heard three distinct shots. As of press time Thursday, he was in critical condition at Valley Medical Center in San Jose. His vital signs were unstable.
Silva shares an apartment with his father, his brother and Walker at 225 Gurries Drive, with a garage and entrance facing the wide alley. Gurries Drive runs only two blocks, from Church Street to Hanna Street, north of First Street; the unnamed alley is lined with apartment buildings, garages and a small, fenced cemetery. Walker and his friends often hang out here – skating and playing video games. When his friends were robbed, Silva was away, visiting another friend on nearby Rosanna Street.
“I wish I’d been here,” he said Thursday afternoon, shaken and bleary-eyed. Friends say Walker fought back – “and that’s why they shot him.”
Nine officers rushed to the scene, joined by crime scene technicians and detectives, who pored over evidence in the alley until early Thursday morning; hours later, detectives were back at work, conducting interviews. The suspects are described as three 19- to 20-year-old Hispanic men, wearing dark clothing and jackets. One suspect is “at least 6 feet tall” and “on the heavier side,” said Sgt. Kurt Svardal; a second is 5-feet, 4-inches tall and weighs 120 pounds. No further description of the third suspect was available. As of press time Thursday, all three suspects were at large.
“We don’t have any immediate indications that it was gang-related,” said Svardal, “but it’s very early in the investigation.”
Police list the potential charges as attempted homicide and robbery. Whether the suspects will be charged with attempting first-degree murder, second-degree murder or a reduced charge is up to the District Attorney’s office. If convicted of both attempted murder and robbery, they could face anywhere from 12 years to life in prison, according to the state Penal Code.
