Akron Police on Wednesday raised the number of people shot in Sunday's mass shooting at a street party in East Akron to 27 people. Two were in critical condition, 24 were either in stable condition or have been treated and released, police said.
Lateris Cook, 27, was killed in the drive-by shooting.
At a briefing Wednesday afternoon, Police Chief Brian Harding said they were not yet comfortable providing a description of the suspect or suspects. He also indicated that it was likely that not everyone at the party witnessed the shooting.
"We've received some descriptions. We just, some of them can be a little different, and we want to make sure that we're giving the right information," Harding said. "Some people might've turned that way, they heard that and went the other way and would not have seen that."
Harding said they're also following up on descriptions of a car from 911 calls, including a red Dodge Charger.
"We followed up with that vehicle. We have a couple of other vehicle descriptions we followed up with," the chief said. "But again, I don't want to jeopardize where we may have information on each of those as well."
Harding said finding those responsible is the department's top priority.
"We've received several tips, and that's why we try to share different ways that people can confidentially do that," he said. "We'll take the information any way we can get it... The more information we get, it'll help us build a better case."
Akron Police said they have recovered 45 shell casings from at least five different weapons from the scene. They said at least one person attending the party fired back.
Mayor Shammas Malik also spoke at Wednesday's briefing. He said the trauma from the mass shooting has affected everyone in Akron.
"The mental health of our residents, our employees and especially those who were at the party and live in the surrounding neighborhoods is absolutely critical in the days, weeks and months ahead," the mayor said.
Malik said at least one resident approached him to discuss support for the Kelly Avenue neighborhood where the shooting took place.
"Their concern was that we would be focused on making an arrest and wiping our hands and moving on," Malik said. "We're not going to do that. We are here with the community."
The folks in this neighborhood will be processing this trauma for "weeks, months and likely years to come," he said, "and they deserve a city government that doesn't just move along to the next thing."
There are events beginning Wednesday night at Arlington Church of God and Thursday at Burning Bush Church. A community gathering is also scheduled for Saturday at the East Akron Neighborhood Development Corporation.
Malik said they have a safety plan for summer and that residents should keep the city informed about larger neighborhood gatherings.
"We want to make sure we have adequate staffing to be able to do a lot of this proactive work," Malik said. "But we also want to work to ensure that we're aware of events."
