GREENSBORO, N.C. (WGHP) — An Elon law student’s sense of security is shaken after he discovered half a dozen bullet holes in his partner’s car while parked in downtown Greensboro.
“It’s scary thinking if we had decided to go out that night, we might have witnessed it, and it would have been very scary,” said Matthew Ferris who lives at Carroll at Bellemeade in downtown.
Around 5 p.m. on Sunday, Ferris went to get in his partner’s car which was parked in a spot a block away on Commerce Place.
As he got closer, he noticed the windows were shattered. At first, he thought someone tried to break in. Then he noticed five tiny holes in the driver’s side window.
There was also a single bullet hole in the windshield, passenger side window and on top of the car along with a Greensboro Police Department detective’s business card under the windshield.
“They basically just said that our car was used probably as cover for a drive-by shooting or shoot-out type situation,” Ferris said.
Ferris’ car wasn’t the only thing damaged. The window of a photography studio across the street was also shattered.
FOX8 crews also spotted a bullet and a shell casing in the same area, which is a block away from where crews are assembling the Lawn Stage for the North Carolina Folk Festival.
“This is not something we should be having to deal with as downtown residents. It’s a growing concern for a lot of us,” Ferris said.
Ferris says four of his classmates have moved out of the downtown area due to safety reasons.
FOX8 spoke to another Elon law student who recounted how she and a friend were chased home from a bar.
She says earlier in the year, she and a friend were walking home from the Bearded Goat. A man got out of a car driving past them and chased them to the City View Apartments.
Ferris wants everyone to be aware of their surroundings downtown.
“Every single time I walk outside, I’m being cognizant of who is driving by and what … I need to be aware of, and should I even be walking on the street right now?” Ferris said.
FOX8 reached out to the GPD for more information about the case.
Our crew also reached out to city leaders for more information about downtown safety efforts but have not made contact with anyone due to the holiday.
