SALEM, Ore. -- A 21-year-old Salem man died Wednesday after he was shot at a park near his apartment complex, according to the victim's family.
Family mourns for dead son
Montez Bailey, who had lived in the Viking Village Apartments near Northgate Park for almost four years, was out walking a new puppy with two friends, when the three stopped at a park bench to "hang out in the sun with the dog," his mother, Kathy Bailey said.
A Hispanic teenager walked up to the three men and asked them "what they were doing on the south side," according to the victim's sister, Kametria Bailey.
The three men laughed at the teenager and informed him that they were in northeast Salem, not south Salem, according to Bailey's family.
The teenager then pulled out a gun, shot them and fled the scene.
The shooting occurred Tuesday afternoon around 4 p.m., according to Salem Police Sgt. Andrew Connolly.
Investigators said there was no indication of a fight before the shooting.
Another victim, 20-year-old Cameron Carolino, was shot in the leg. The bullet went through both of his legs and he remains hospitalized in Salem.
The third victim, Skylar Hyland, 21, was shot in his side. The bullet went up and through his shoulder, then out his neck area, breaking a vertebra. He is hospitalized at Oregon Health Sciences University.
Gilbert Bailey, father of the dead victim, said his son knew it was a park where gang members hung out, but that Montez told him before he died that he and his friends were "just walking the dog."
The Bailey family said all three of the victims have known each other since kindergarten. Each comes from a different ethnic background -- Montez was black, Carolino of Asian descent and the third victim a Caucasian -- and that they were 2005 graduates of McKay High School in Salem.
Neighbors were convinced it was a gang-related shooting.
"We have nothing but new graffiti and marking in this territory. They're walking down the street, flagging their colors," said Cindy Duncan, who lives near the park.
Others said they had stopped letting children play at the park.
"My kids run back and say there are gang kids on the bench so they go home," Valentin DeLeon said.
Detectives offered no comment on whether gangs were involved.
"Obviously it's bold to do that in public and we're very concerned about that," Salem Police Lt. Dave Okada said.
The suspect was described as a Hispanic male between 16 and 18 years old, with short black, close-cut hair, wearing a light colored shirt, long blue shorts and carrying a black backpack.
Anyone with information on the suspect or shooting was urged to call Salem police.
KGW Reporters Erica Heartquist and Mike Benner contributed to this report.
