Two people were shot and wounded, one critically, and a car was stolen early this morning (July 29) at a gas station in Fenton, St. Louis County Police reported.
At 3:48 a.m., police got a call about shots fired at the Phillips 66 gas station, 698 Gravois Bluffs Blvd., near the Gravois Bluffs shopping center, the report said.
A man and woman were found behind the gas station with apparent gunshot wounds. They were taken to an area hospital, where the man was in critical condition and the woman was in stable condition as of 11 a.m. today, according to the report.
Before the shooting, the victims met two people in front of the gas station, and after talking for a while, the four went behind the building and shots were fired, Police reported.
One suspect reportedly left the gas station in a white Nissan sedan that belongs to the victims. Another suspect left in a dark-colored passenger car, the report said.
About 10 minutes after police got a call about the shooting, the Nissan was found near the intersection of Hwy. 30 and West Watson Road in St. Louis County. A man got out of the car and fled into Minnie Ha Ha Park, 801 Old Gravois Road, in Sunset Hills, through a tree line, according to the report.
Police surrounded the park and searched the area with helicopters and K9 officers, Sgt. Ben Granda said during a press conference.
The suspect was not found, and police believe he could have left the park before the area was secured, the report said.
The suspect who fled into the park is described as a black male with long dreadlocks. He was wearing a marron shirt, police said.
There was no description available for the suspect who left the scene in the dark-colored passenger car, according to police.
“We are working the best we can to apprehend this armed and dangerous individual,” Granda said. “This is not a cause for alarm. There is some type of dialogue or relationship between the parties involved. This is not random. This is not something that would cause me or my family alarm if we lived in this area or patronized these businesses.”
Officers from the Jefferson County Sheriff’s Office and the Sunset Hills and Kirkwood police departments helped with the search. The St. Louis County Police Department’s Bureau of Crimes Against Persons is leading the investigation, according to the report.