Jewelry

Shooting outside Chula Vista Costco result of online jewelry sale gone wrong, police say - The San Diego Union-Tribune

An “online sale that went bad” Tuesday night ended up with three shots being fired in a busy Chula Vista parking lot and the two men involved in the botched deal in police custody, authorities said.

The non-injury shooting was reported about 8:30 p.m. outside the Costco and Walmart on Broadway south of Naples Street, Chula Vista police Sgt. Joe Briles said.

One of the two men involved in the sale — which apparently involved jewelry being advertised on the online marketplace OfferUp — reported the shooting as it was happening, Briles told San Diego News Video and other reporters at the scene.

Both men drove to the meet-up at the lot, which serves the two large stores as well as fast food chains, a bank and other smaller stores, Briles said. But exactly what transpired to prompt the shooting was still under investigation.

“They met at a common location to facilitate the sale,” Briles said. “Something happened and shots ended up being fired.”

Two of the shots struck one of the vehicles, Briles said. Police were still searching late Tuesday night for where the third gunshot went.

“Shots being fired in a full parking lot is terrifying for us as at the police department because of the potential for injury to the people here,” Briles said.

Officers arrived on scene quickly after receiving the call and detained both men involved in the incident, Briles said. Police also recovered a Glock handgun at the scene that was thought to be the firearm used in the shooting.

One suspect was in custody “maybe for robbery, the other one maybe for shooting at the other individual,” Lt. Scott Adkins told the Union-Tribune.

Adkins said the the incident remained under investigation by Chula Vista’s crimes of violence unit late Tuesday, but detectives tentatively believed one man possibly tried to rob the other, which likely prompted the shooting. The names and ages of the men were not immediately available.

Neither man had been booked into jail as of 10:30 p.m., police said.