Lexington police: One person dead, five injured after shooting
One person is dead and five more are injured from a shooting that occurred in Lexington early Friday morning, according to the Lexington Police Department.
At 12:18 a.m., police received a report of a shooting with multiple victims at the El Cid Mexican restaurant on National Avenue. Lexington police said six people were shot and one person later died at a hospital.
The Fayette County Coroner’s Office identified the victim as Antoine Clay, 31. Clay was declared dead at 12:59 a.m. at University of Kentucky Chandler Hospital.
An autopsy for Clay has been scheduled for Friday at the State Medical Examiner’s Office in Frankfort, according to the coroner’s office.
The injuries of the other five victims were described as non-life-threatening, according to police.
No suspect information was available to release. Police later released a statement saying there’s no ongoing threat to the public related to the shooting.
“With the investigation in its early stages, the Lexington Police Department is limited in the information it has to release. As information becomes available, the department will send out additional news releases and update the public on social media,” police said in a statement.
People with information about the shooting are encouraged to call Lexington police at (859) 258-3600. Anonymous tips can be submitted to Bluegrass Crime Stoppers by calling 859-253-2020 or submitting a tip form on their website.
Police asked residents and businesses in the area to check their surveillance camera footage and report anything suspicious to police.
This is the ninth homicide in Lexington this year. At this point last year the city had reported 13 homicides, according to police.
In 2023, Lexington reported 24 homicides, fewer than the record-breaking year of 2022, when 44 killings took place. The last time Lexington reported 24 or fewer homicides in a year was in 2018, according to Lexington police data, which dates back to 2008.
In the past 10 years, the city has reported 24 or fewer homicides only three times, according to Lexington police records.
One Lexington Director Devine Carama encouraged anyone experiencing trauma from the shooting to reach out to him at dcarama@lexingtonky.gov.
“My heart hurts,” Camara said in a Facebook post. “For the first time in years, the city has been OUTSIDE lately.. You felt the fear finally starting to subside a little and then something like this happens.”
This story was originally published August 9, 2024 at 7:57 AM.
