Thomas MacMillan Photo
Sgt. David Guliuzza stretched crime scene tape across Chapel Street.
Neighbors reported a shot in the park at 9:30 p.m. Monday. Police found a body more than five hours later, and were still searching for evidence the following morning.
As of Monday morning, police had Chapel Street closed off between Yale Avenue and the Boulevard, at the southern end of Edgewood Park, as they investigated what Assistant Chief John Velleca called a “suspicious death.”
A man was found dead in the park in the middle of the night, near the east end of the duck pond by the corner of Chapel and the Boulevard.
Police spokesman Joe Avery said a person called 911 around 9:30 p.m. to report that a man parked on Chapel Street then walked into the park; then a gunshot was heard. The man’s dead body was found with a gunshot wound.
Velleca said police responded to the scene at 9:30 p.m. but didn’t find the body until five and half hours later. They did not find a gun.
It was unclear if the incident is a suicide or homicide.
On Monday morning, shortly after 10 a.m., police towed away a silver Mercedes Benz E320 parked on Boulevard near Chapel. Velleca said it was the victim’s car.
Harris.
Latoya Harris, who’s 34, lives across the street from the crime scene. She said she didn’t hear any gunshots Monday night, but police were on the scene all night.
“I knew it had to be something bad,” she said.
Harris said she saw cops remove a covered body at around 10 a.m.
The crime scene location (A).
Two Others Shot Monday
In other police news, according to Avery:
Two people were shot at Dixwell and Henry Street at 8:49 p.m. on Monday. ShotSpotter indicated six gunshots were fired near 294 Dixwell Ave. Cops found two people in the street. One, a 21-year-old, was shot in the shoulder. The other, a 53-year-old, was hit in the back. He was taken to Yale-New Haven Hospital and was listed in stable but critical condition on Tuesday.
Along with the man found in the park, a man shot during a mugging, and another shot during a convenience store robbery, five people were shot on Monday.
Crime Map
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NHPD
For block-by-block year-to-date crime information, plus daily crime maps, check out the Independent’s Crime Log.