CLEVELAND — An early Monday morning shooting at a popular 24-hour restaurant in Cleveland left two people dead and two people injured, according to authorities.
The shooting happened just before 4 a.m. at My Friends Restaurant and Deli, on Detroit Road near W. 117th Street.
Cleveland police reported four people were shot during the incident. All of the victims were customers. Workers said the incident began with an argument and ended in gunfire.
According to police, once officers arrived on scene they located a woman in her 20s with gunshot wounds to her body. First aid was rendered until EMS arrived and transported her to a nearby hospital where she later died. The Cuyahoga County Medical Examiner's Office identified the victim as Geongela Rivers, 23, of Euclid.
Officers also located a 27-year-old man, later identified as Keondre Austin, with a gunshot wound to his neck. Aid was rendered and EMS transported him to a nearby hospital where we was later pronounced dead.
The two injured individuals, a 25-year-old man and a 29-year-old man, were arrested and taken to nearby hospitals with gunshot wounds. The 29-year-old man was was found in the kitchen area of the restaurant with gunshot wounds to the arm, leg and face.
Preliminary information indicates that two separate groups of people were seated in the My Friends Restaurant and a verbal exchange took place between the 27-year-old man and the 25-year-old man. At one point during the argument, the two men who were arrested each pulled out guns and began shooting at one another, striking each other and the 27-year-old man and 21-year-old woman.
Councilmember Jenny Spencer issued the following statement in regards to the incident:
The deadly shooting at My Friends Restaurant is still under active investigation by the Cleveland Division of Police (CDP). This is not a part of the city of Cleveland and Ward 15 that is subject to violent crime. Early reports indicate that this was an isolated incident between two groups of diners. It is my understanding that no other patrons were present at the time of the shooting. I am extremely upset about these shooting deaths. I believe that shootings like these will only continue to increase with the unfortunate proliferation of handguns in the United States. The CDP investigation will yield further details.
Check back for updated information as this story develops.
