SAN ANTONIO – Another shooting on the East Side was an act of random family violence, according to San Antonio Police Chief William McManus.
A man allegedly shot his brother in the chest before fleeing the scene.
Officers responded just before 1 p.m. to the scene at Pine and Nevada streets.
The victim ran down the street before collapsing on a neighbor’s front lawn.
“He asked the gentleman who was sitting on the porch to call police,” McManus said. “By the time he got his cellphone, EMS was arriving.”
The victim, Gerald Boyd, 31, was taken to San Antonio Military Medical Center in serious condition.
McManus said the motive is unknown and no weapon was recovered.
But he said an arrest warrant was being issued for Boyd’s brother.
The chief and Alan Warrick, City Council member for District 2, were both at the shooting scene in response to the recent spike in East Side violence which has resulted in eight murders since the first of the year.
Warrick had previously said he believed the number of shootings were comparable to other parts of the city, just more concentrated.
He said his view has changed.
“There’s definitely an uptick now we haven’t seen in recent years,” Warrick said.
Warrick said he believes the violence is being fueled by a Mexican drug cartel.
“The intel (intelligence) I’ve gotten, it seems like the cartel is infiltrating and there’s some infighting within the gangs,” Warrick said. “The cartel isn’t on the East Side but they’re influencing what’s happening on the East Side.”
McManus said, “We are looking at all possible reasons for the sudden spike in violence.”
The chief said police are devoting the necessary resources to the situation and working with other law enforcement agencies as well.
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