SUGAR HILL — New details have been released by the Gwinnett County Police Department about the shooting that happened at Gary Pirkle Park in Sugar Hill on Saturday night.
According to the preliminary investigation, the shooting happened after a game between two semi-professional football teams got into a large brawl in the middle of the football field resulting in the game being cancelled. After the game was cancelled, a large number of shots were fired in the area between the bathrooms and the parking lot.
Evidence collected at the scene suggests that multiple people fired shots in that incident. A 40-year-old Snellville man was shot in the foot and was treated at a local hospital for non-life-threatening injuries.
Residents of Sugar Hill took to social media expressing their outrage over this incident and called for the city, which owns and operates Gary Pirkle Park, to take a closer look at the organizations in which they rent out the park to. They asked the city to put safety above financial gain.
The City of Sugar Hill released an official statement late Sunday acknowledging the incident. The statement goes on to address the residents’ safety concerns.
“Future use of the facilities at Gary Pirkle Park will not be permitted by the league who hosted the event last night or other similar adult professional development leagues until such time as a thorough review of policies related to all of our rentals can be completed,” said Mercy Montgomery, Economic Development Director for the City of Sugar Hill.
Detectives believe that there were at least a hundred people present when the shooting occurred. However, by the time the police arrived a majority of those people had left the park. “Investigators believe there are many people with information on this case,” said Corporal Collin Flynn, Public Information Officer with the Gwinnett County Police Department. He added, “They are asking those people to come forward and contact the police department.”
If anyone has any information to share in this case, please contact GCPD detectives at 770-513-5300. To remain anonymous, tipsters should contact Crime Stoppers at 404-577-TIPS (8477) or visit www.stopcrimeATL.com. Crime Stoppers tipsters can receive a cash reward for information leading to an arrest and indictment in this case. Case Number: 20-064600
— Staff Reports
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