Police swarm Belleville apartments after gunshot victim dropped off at hospital

Police officers swarmed an apartment complex on Freedom Drive in Belleville on Tuesday afternoon following a report of shots fired.

Police responded to Copper Creek Crossings after receiving a call from Memorial Hospital around 2:15 p.m. The hospital reported that someone who suffered a gunshot to the upper body had been dropped off, and that the driver of the vehicle sped away.

The victim was transferred to a Missouri hospital. He was listed in stable condition Tuesday evening.

Officers who went to Memorial were told that the shooting possibly had taken place at the Copper Creek Crossings apartment complex on Freedom Drive across the street from Crehan’s Irish Pub.

“Preliminary information indicates the victim and suspect knew each other,” a news release from the Belleville Police Department said.

Police established a perimeter around the area, and some officers with long guns were seen conducting a search. There was blood next to a van in the parking lot. Firefighters arrived and washed it down.

Officers found the vehicle in which the victim had been transported to the hospital. Police were searching it for evidence Tuesday night.

There were at least six police vehicles at the apartment complex. Yellow crime-scene tape was up at the end of the parking lot and the building closest to the treeline.

A single evidence marker was on the ground near the van in front of the apartment building.

It was unknown whether the shooting was related to a shooting that occurred earlier in the day in East St. Louis.

The investigation was continuing Tuesday evening. The suspect was still at large Tuesday evening, and police were asking anyone with information to call Crimestoppers at 877-68-CRIME, or 478-742-2330.

This story was originally published July 19, 2016 at 5:24 PM with the headline "Police swarm Belleville apartments after gunshot victim dropped off at hospital."