CRESTVIEW — The city of Crestview saw many shootings during 2019.
Crestview Police Chief Stephen McCosker said despite the unusually large number of shootings, only five cases remain unresolved.
“The fact of the matter is all of them are solved, but some of them aren’t resolved,” McCosker said. “Most of the individuals, if not all of them, are in jail for unrelated charges.”
According to McCosker, there are different reasons for why the cases have not been resolved, including uncooperative victims.
“These aren’t random,” McCosker said. “These people knew the person that was the target. All of the cases are walking toward closure. We don’t have an unidentified person out there shooting a gun.”
Overall, McCosker said he was very pleased with how his officers have handled the shootings.
“I’ve been really impressed with the detective team on how they were able to track all these cases down,” McCosker said. “Sergeant Josh Grace is doing a great job in directing those guys.”
Here is information about some of the incidents:
March 2 shooting at the Cross Drive/Robinson Avenue intersection
The shooting occurred at approximately 11:20 p.m.
One person was shot at but was not hit by the bullet. The cause of the shooting has yet to be released.
April 7 shooting at Cash’s Lounge
The shooting occurred at approximately 2:25 a.m. when a gunman shot and killed 39-year-old Pernell Thomas at Cash’s Lounge located at 1601 South Ferdon Boulevard. Another man was grazed by a bullet and was treated at North Okaloosa Medical Center and released.
A Crestview Police officer who had been hired by the lounge for a security detail was patrolling the parking lot when the shooting occurred and pursued the suspect on foot as he ran from the building.
The suspect was unable to be located by law enforcement.
May 2 shooting at/near the Macedonia Missionary Baptist Church on Martin Luther King Jr Avenue
The shooting occurred at approximately 11:15 p.m. on May 2.
The victim, who was shot but survived, did not report the incident until the next day.
The cause of the shooting has not been released.
September 4 shooting at the South Booker Street/Walnut Avenue intersection
At approximately 4:45 p.m., officers responded in reference to multiple 911 calls reporting that someone was shooting at a vehicle in the area.
When officers arrived on scene, it was determined that two people had received non-life-threatening injuries and were taken to the hospital by friends and then released.
October 13 shooting at the Martin Luther King Jr Avenue/Wilson Street intersection
The Crestview Police Department responded to a shooting incident that occurred just before 10:30 a.m. at an abandoned residence.
One person was transported for a gunshot wound to the abdomen. The victim survived the incident.
Two days later, the CPD made two arrests in connection with the incident.
Thomas J. Adams was arrested in connection with the shooting and charged with aggravated battery with a deadly weapon and home invasion robbery. Adams also had active warrants out of Andalusia, Alabama for burglary.
The second individual, Jarvis A Smart was charged with armed robbery and obstruction by providing a false name to law enforcement.
This article originally appeared on Crestview News Bulletin: Crestview police chief discusses unresolved 2019 shootings