Appleton Police Department patch. (PHOTO: Courtesy of Fox 11 WLUK)
APPLETON, WI (WTAQ-WLUK) — A person was taken to the hospital following a shooting at an Appleton park Monday afternoon.
Police were called to Erb Park around 4:30 p.m. for reports of a disturbance.
Upon arrival, police located an injured person and several people running from the park.
Medical attention was immediately rendered and the injured individual was taken to the hospital for treatment.
Officers secured a perimeter and tried to identify those involved.
“We believe it was centralized to the park area here, we’re still sorting out a lot of the details of what happened. That’s why there’s a heavy police presence. We’ll continue to do that until we know further,” said Meghan Cash with the Appleton Police Department.
One person is in custody related to the incident.
Based on the investigation, police believe the victim was targeted and there is no further danger to the community.
Officers say they continue to gather evidence, interview witnesses and piece together the events leading up to the shooting.
Neighbors of Erb Park were asked to shelter in place for about an hour shortly after the shooting happened.
Those who were in the area shortly around the time of the incident say they believe it could’ve happened just outside the pool.
Trent Willard and Tyler Gauthier were on their way to play basketball at Erb Park- a spot they visit often, when they were told about an incident involving a weapon. They say it’s unusual to see any kind of crime in that area.
“We were trying to play basketball. We started heading to the court, the cop started coming to us from the court, told us the whole park’s shut down, we couldn’t play basketball. We got a good look at the court though and it looked like there was a blood splatter on the court. It looked like, not sure if it was,” Willard said.
“Nothing this crazy at this park before. Usually the park is like just a bunch of kids here usually so like I don’t know what could’ve happened,” Gauthier added.
Anyone with information is encouraged to call the Appleton Police Department’s non-emergency line at (920) 832-5500.
The park was closed while police were on scene. As of 9 p.m., the park reopened.
Park and Recreation programing will continue at Erb Park Tuesday as scheduled. The Appleton Police Department will have additional staff available at the park.
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