A southeast Gainesville man was rushed to the hospital Tuesday afternoon after a woman found him with a gunshot wound to the chest.
The man was taken to UF Health Shands Hospital with life-threatening injuries. Police have not yet released his name.
Officers found a handgun but are unsure if it was the weapon used in the shooting, said GPD spokesman Officer Ben Tobias.
At about 2:30 p.m., Gainesville Police responded to the 1200 block of Southeast Ninth Street after receiving a call about a man bleeding from his chest, Tobias said.
Edith Roper, a resident at the home where the man was shot, said the man has been living with her for the last two months while he was transitioning out of jail.
Roper, 79, explained that the man was friends with her grandson.
Just before the shooting, Roper said the victim came inside and asked for a knife, then went outside. She thought he was going to use it to make a sandwich, she said. Then, about 10 minutes later, she heard a pop “like a firecracker,” she said.
Soon after, Roper’s granddaughter-in-law, 30-year-old Celia Kelly, said she went outside to the yard and saw the man on the ground with blood on his chest.
Both Roper and Kelly said they didn’t know anyone who could have been responsible. Police are still investigating the incident.
A version of this story ran on page 1 on 10/2/2013 under the headline "Man shot in southeast Gainesville"
Dried blood remains on the doorknob and shed near where a southeast Gainesville man was shot Tuesday afternoon. Police are still investigating the incident.
