New Bedford Councilor Gomes: Pleasant Street Shooters Are ‘Idiots’

After a relatively quiet start to the summer season in New Bedford, there was a shooting in the wee hours of Monday morning near Pleasant and Grinnell Streets in the South End of the city.

Police Chief Paul Oliveira responded to a text inquiry asking about the shooting.

"Multiple shots fired on Pleasant Street," he said. "One victim struck" by gunfire, he said, and suffered "non-life-threatening injuries."

New Bedford Police Lt. Scott Carola issued a statement later saying South End patrol cars responded to a ShotSpotter activation at about 2 a.m. on Monday. Carola said officers arrived to find shell casings along with damage to a nearby house and vehicles.

Carola did not disclose how many shots were fired in order to "protect the integrity of the investigation." I am told there may have been as many as 18 shots fired.

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City Councilor Brian Gomes, who chairs the council's Committee on Public Safety and Neighborhoods, called the shooters "idiots." Gomes urged anyone who might have information about what transpired to contact the police anonymously.

Gomes said "someone innocent could have been killed" in the shooting and as a result of what happened he believes "something else is brewing."

There were several "tit-for-tat" shooting incidents, including an apparent shootout at a Dartmouth Mall carnival during the spring. New Bedford Police removed a number of guns from the streets since then, and Gomes said it has been a fairly quiet summer.

Gomes said "the public is behind the police" and he called on family and friends of gang members who may be armed to drop a dime.

"If you know someone has a weapon or something is brewing, make a call, tip off the police," he said.