ROANOKE, Va. – After a weekend of gun violence in the Star City, local leaders are calling on the community to come forward with information which could help lead to an arrest.
“People are hurting and frustrated because of the trauma that it creates. People are reaching for things to do, and all of us wanted to stop now,” Roanoke City Councilor Joe Cobb said.
Officers responded to incidents on Williamson Road and Glenn Ridge Road for two separate shootings. City leaders on the gun violence prevention commission say solutions to the problem won’t come overnight.
“So that’s the challenge that we face, is how to continue to do the things that we do well and continue to say we don’t condone violence in any form,” Cobb said.
Roanoke City Mayor Sherman Lea says he was disappointed to see the violence over the weekend.
“There have been some staggering numbers that are coming about the use of gun so gun control from Washington D.C., all the way down to the local level, is a major issue,” Roanoke Mayor Sherman Lea said.
Lea says the city has come along way in terms of addressing the issues that cause the violence and expects progress to be made over the summer.
“We’re just not going to let the bad guys take over our city. We’re going to keep working hard and, and again it’s something that is seen back as a pandemic in this country regarding gun violence,” Lea said.
Anyone with information that may lead to an arrest is asked to contact the Roanoke City Police Department at 540-853-2212.