California neighborhood reacts to hookah lounge shooting
HAYWARD, Calif. (CBS, KYMA/KECY) - California residents were in shock to hear about a shooting at a neighborhood hookah lounge, and one resident shared her reaction to the news.
Yanet Ramirez had just opened her nail salon in Hayward for the day when she heard the news.
There had been a shooting just a block away from her business early that morning. She couldn't believe it.
"It's pretty safe around here, but there had been another incident there before…in that same place," Ramirez spoke.
Ramirez was in shock as she thought about the victims and their families. The shooting was reported at 1:38am. Sheriff's deputies arrived within five minutes and immediately saw one person dead in front of the business.
Dispatchers then received calls from local hospitals reporting three gunshot wound victims arriving. One of the victims died from injuries at a hospital.
Operating illegally
The shooting occurred outside of a hookah lounge, recently shut down by the city. The sheriff's office said the city had recently shut this place down, but it was operating illegally.
"We received a lot of complaints about this place. Our crime prevention unit, our crime prevention, and our crime reduction unit has been out here a number of time over the past two years, along with the Board of Zoning and Adjustments and Code Enforcement," said Lt. Tya Modeste, Public Information Officer for the Alameda County Sheriff's Office.
The sheriff's office said they had been dealing with the problems attributed to the hookah lounge for the last two years.
"This place has received multiple fines. As you see from the front of the building, they've taken them they've taken their signage down as if the business is closed, but they've continued to operate," Modeste added.
As the day went on, Ramirez said she continued to think about the shooting; she says she hopes violent incidents like this one don't affect the sense of security in the neighborhood.
