Four separate highway shootings were reported within 20 minutes on San Diego County highways and officials have launched a search for a vehicle with two suspects and a semi-automatic gun last seen driving northbound on I-5 in the Carmel Valley area.
A driver riding along the Northbound I-805 near Mesa College Drive reports shots were fired at their car late Monday morning. Officers investigating the scene closed the NB I-805 from I-8 to the SR-163 for one hour, while officers looked for evidence. Watch Video
Police also shut down the NB I-5 from the I-805 merge to Del Mar Heights Road for almost an hour.
The call came in to officers at 10:44 a.m. from the driver of a Hyundai Accent.
The driver of the vehicle was shot in the leg and was transported to Sharp Memorial Hospital for treatment. The 26-year-old male victim was released within hours, after suffering a non-life threatening wound.
The second vehicle, a black four-door Volvo sedan, was shot just south on Plaza Blvd. on the Northbound 805. The driver, Marcus Eagles, 37, of Paradise Valley, said a passing car pulled up to him and fired once at his car. He pulled over near Plaza Blvd. and I-805 in National City to alert police.
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Eagles had just dropped off his young daughter when he says a man pulled up alongside him.
"I was just driving, I heard a loud pop," Eagles said. "It all like happened at the same time. Looked over saw the person, heard the pop and saw the gun, like all in one shot."
Eagles is former Navy and says his military experience probably helped him remain calm under pressure.
"I'm OK, but I am still shook up about it," Eagles said.
The bullet entered the rear driver's side door and hit luggage sitting in Eagles' backseat, close to where his daughter was previously sitting.
The Plaza Blvd. shooting could be the first incident in the shooting spree, according to National City police.
"We don't know where they were going, we don't know the motive," said National City Chief of Police Adolfo Gonzales. "There were no words exchanged, there were no gang signs exchanged, none of that seen, so we don't know the motive for the shooting at this time."
"We're very concerned when innocent people are being shot at for no particular reason, in this case there were multiple incidents, not one isolated incident, so I think they have something in their mind," Gonzales said.
This shooting could be the first incident in the shooting spree, according to the National City police.
Officers also reported the suspects shot at a California Highway Patrol vehicle near NB I-805 and the NB SR-163.
A fourth shooting occurred on the NB I-5 at Del Mar Heights, where the suspects shot at a passing ambulance.
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Only one was hurt during the alleged shooting spree officers said.
Police said witnesses reported seeing two men with a semi-automatic handgun driving a white 2005 or 2006 Chevy Malibu with California license plate 5POM917.
The suspects were last seen driving north near the I-5 and Del Mar Heights Rd. Police say the man is considered armed and dangerous. If anyone sees the vehicle they are urged to dial 911 immediately.
The Mesa College off-ramp off the I-805 will remain closed indefinitely.
Officers say the spree may be related to a hit and run that occurred on San Ysidro Boulevard in the South Bay early Monday.
Police say they first received a call around 10:22 a.m. about a Chevy Malibu that hit a gate on San Ysidro Blvd. and fled the scene of the accident. Police believe this could be the first sighting of the suspect's vehicle.
This would be the second time in seven months that San Diego motorists driving along the freeway were targeted by a shooter.
On April 5, two motorists were shot at while driving on the southbound 163 freeway near Kearny Mesa. One University of San Diego student was shot in the abdomen through her vehicle.
The other driver’s vehicle was also struck, but the man was not harmed. Stephen Dragasits, 58, was accused of the shooting.
View Locations of Highway Shootings on Oct. 3, 2011 in a larger map
