Dec 11, 2007 8:00 pm US/Mountain
Students Shot Leaving School Bus In Las Vegas
Cops: One Person In Critical Condition In Attack That Followed A Fight Over A Girl
LAS VEGAS (CBS News) ―
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Gunshots rang out in northeast Las Vegas just before 2 p.m., Officer Bill Cassell said.
CBS
Six young people were shot Tuesday afternoon in a northeast Las Vegas neighborhood after they stepped off a bus that had left a high school. Authorities say at least one person was critically injured in the attack, which happened just blocks away from two elementary schools.
"They were just like sitting ducks as soon as the bus pulled away - bam bam bam - they start getting shot like that," says Elaine Budesa, an eyewitness.
Police are not saying whether the attackers were on foot or in a vehicle, but at least two people are believed to have taken part. Officer Bill Cassell said the police gang unit is investigating, though it is not clear at this point whether gangs were involved.
The victims do not appear to have been random targets, according to Deputy police chief Marc Joseph, who says the gunmen appear to have been "waiting for certain individuals on the bus."
CBS News correspondent Steve Futterman reports police believe the shooting may be connected to a fight that happened at the high school a few hours before the shooting. Police say three boys - who have since been arrested - were involved in the fight, which is said to have been over a girl.
Police also say the two gunmen are at large, and may have escaped on foot, during the confusion that followed the shootings.
University Medical Center spokeswoman Cheryl Persinger says one of the victims, a man, is in critical condition and a teenage boy is in serious condition, both with gunshots to the torso.
She says four others had minor gunshot injuries to their arms and legs. A man was treated and released and three teens - two boys and a girl - are listed in good condition.
The school bus was from Mojave High School, which has about 2,300 students. Clark County School District spokesman Michael Rodriguez says the school will be open Wednesday, with extra security measures and support services in place.
The two elementary schools that were near the scene of the shooting, according to Rodriguez, were locked down temporarily but were reopened before 3 p.m.
Archie Gorai, 22, who lives about a block from the site of the shooting, said he heard about eight gunshots while he was wrapping Christmas presents at his home.
"I told my wife it was gunshots. She thought it was firecrackers," Gorai said.
(© 2009 CBS Broadcasting Inc. All Rights Reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed. The Associated Press contributed to this report.)
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