A 22-year-old man was shot multiple times early Friday morning outside of Vibe Bistro & Lounge on Somerset Street West.
Ottawa police arrived outside the bar around 2:30 a.m. following reports of gunshots, but the victim had already left. Officers found several shell casings at the scene.
The shooting victim later turned up at the Ottawa Hospital’s Civic campus with gunshot wounds to his shoulder and abdomen. His injuries are not life threatening, and his condition is stable.
Officers interviewed the victim at the hospital and have not released his identity. He said that he was outside smoking a cigarette when he was shot and knows nothing more, according to CBC Ottawa. Police said the victim was a known gang associate, according to some reports.
The incident was loud enough to wake nearby residents, says Stephan Valliere, who lives across the street from the bar.
“I heard screaming and stuff, yelling, and then I woke up,” he said. “I heard three gunshots.”
Both he and his mother, Maryanne Valliere, say they saw two cars speed away after the gunshots. Once police arrived, they taped off Bayswater Avenue and handcuffed a man on the block, he says.
The eldest Valliere says the Vibe Bistro & Bar is “pretty rowdy” on weekends.
Police are seeking a suspect described as a 6’2, 20-year-old black man with a thin build and “corn row braids” in his hair, according to reports in the Ottawa Sun.
Anyone with information about the shooting is asked to call the Ottawa Police Service Guns and Gangs Section at 613-236-1222, ext. 5050, or call Crime Stoppers at 613-233-TIPS (8477) — toll free at 1-800-222-8477.