Escambia County Sheriff’s Office investigators are looking into two out-of-the-ordinary incidents that happened on the fringes of Atmore over the weekend, one a triple shooting and the other a home invasion.
Three local men were shot, allegedly by two unknown males who tried to rob them, and another local man claimed that three people, including a child, forced their way into his home, assaulted him and left him bound and injured.
Chief Deputy Mike Lambert said Tuesday morning that the first incident occurred around 12:35 a.m., Sunday, at an East Sunset Drive residence. Deputies arrived to find that all three shooting victims had been taken by private vehicle to area hospitals.
Lambert said the most seriously injured of the trio was taken to Atmore Community Hospital with a gunshot wound to his abdomen. He received preliminary treatment there before being transferred to University of South Alabama Medical Center, where he underwent surgery and is listed in stable condition.
The other two – one of whom suffered a glancing wound to his head, one shot in the leg – were taken to North Baldwin Infirmary in Bay Minette, where they were treated for non-life threatening injuries before being transferred to USA for observation.
The chief deputy said each of the victims told authorities that “a vehicle they did not know” pulled up in front of the residence, and “two subjects they did not know” got out and demanded their money at gunpoint. The three reportedly told the unknown duo that they only had debit cards or EBT cards, and the mystery men shot them before speeding off in the unknown vehicle, the make and model of which are also unknown.
The second incident occurred at a Harrison Drive address, near Atmore Municipal Airport. The distress call was routed from a Florida emergency call center, through Atmore Police Department dispatchers and eventually to the sheriff’s office.
Lambert said a man who lived at the Harrison Drive house told deputies that “a white man, a white woman and a white child” came to the residence around 4:40 p.m. to inquire about a car he had for sale.
Suddenly, he said, the negotiations broke down and the deal went south.
The trio reportedly “forced their way into his house, bound him with duct tape and assaulted him,” then left. The man told authorities he was able to escape and make his way to the home of a relative, who took him to Atmore Community Hospital. He was treated there for “numerous cuts, bruises and a fractured arm” and released.
Lambert asked that anyone with information related to either crime call the sheriff’s office at 809-2154 or 368-3779.