Fears are growing that Montgomery’s Hispanic community is being targeted
By WSFA 12 News Staff
Published: Jun. 4, 2024 at 11:19 PM CDT|Updated: Jun. 5, 2024 at 10:00 PM CDT
MONTGOMERY, Ala. (WSFA) - Montgomery Mayor Steven Reed and acting Montgomery Police Chief John Hall spoke publicly Wednesday afternoon about the previous night’s deadly triple shooting at a Hispanic-owned grocery store.
Shots rang out Tuesday night at Tienda Los Hermanos grocery store on Troy Highway, leaving two family members and a customer dead, police scrambling to solve the city’s latest homicides, and a community on edge for fears that it’s being targeted.
At the press conference, Hall identified the three victims, saying George Elijah Jr., 50, and Daniel Lopez, 20, died at the scene. Romero Lopez, 43, succumbed to his injuries at the hospital.
The mayor and acting chief spoke passionately, acknowledging this incident was among others, including business robberies, that have targeted Latinos and Hispanics in the city. They were also joined by a Spanish interpreter to translate their message to native Spanish speakers.
“That’s something that’s, in my mind, inexcusable for people to try to target a group who are trying to work to improve their lives and that of their family by people who are coming to steal and take their money,” said Reed. “It’s something that we will not accept. It’s something that we will not tolerate.”
“We will make sure that what took place last night on Troy Highway does not happen again. We’ll make sure that those who are behind this are held accountable and are brought to justice,” the mayor continued.
Reed and Hall said that while state, local and federal resources are in play in this case, the shooters have not yet been identified. Hall said the FBI has been contacted due to the robberies involved.
“So once they’re identified, we’re going to seek the most stringent justice that we can, and right now that most stringent justice is going to be on the federal side,” Hall said.
Hall said they are working to link the guns used in these murders to other cases, as well as examining video evidence and witness statements.
He also said the police department has adjusted officers and added an additional detail to focus on these robberies and violent crimes.
Reed said the targeting of Latinos and Hispanics hits him on a personal level, saying, “We want the public to know, in particular those in our Latino and Hispanic communities to understand that we see you, we hear you, and we’re not going to stand for this. We’re not going to stand for people to be hunted because people think they’re an easy target or they’re easy prey.”
Reed said the city and Central Alabama CrimeStoppers are working on putting out a reward for information. In the meantime, police are encouraging the public to come forward to help find those responsible. At the press conference, police said anyone offering to help does not need to worry about their immigration status, as the priority is solving these homicides. Police are also urging the public not to take the law into their own hands, but to contact police if they know anything.
As for Tuesday’s crime scene, police and fire medics responded to reports of people having been shot just before 9 p.m. at a business in the 4100 block of Troy Highway. That’s where a WSFA 12 News crew found a large gathering of people outside the Tienda Los Hermanos grocery store. The crowds were waiting for official word on what had happened and seeking answers to who was responsible.
Maribel Lopez, who said she was an owner of the business, told WSFA 12 News she’d been at the store but left a short time before it was robbed to go home for the evening. Her brother and nephew are among the dead.
“I don’t know how to feel,” she said of her emotions. “I can’t think about nothing right now.”
WSFA 12 News coverage of last night's horrific triple murder continues in all our evening newscasts. We're talking to a...
Posted by WSFA-TV onWednesday, June 5, 2024
Lopez said the store has been robbed at least six times when no one was there. That more closely fits the description of a burglary. However, Lopez said in each of the investigations, they’ve been unable to get answers from police.
“We need to speak up,” Lopez said. “Everybody needs to speak up, and they need to let the city know that we’re here and we need to take care of each other and we need to get their attention so that they can start working on it.”
Also on the scene were Montgomery Mayor Steven Reed and several city council members. They did not make any official statements. Just hours earlier, the mayor and councilors were present before a crowded audience at Tuesday night’s City Council meeting. That’s where the mayor gave a lengthy presentation on crime and potential solutions and asked council members for a multi-million dollar investment to curb crime.
As of Wednesday morning, the police department had not indicated if there are any known suspects.
Some in Montgomery’s Hispanic community are on edge, fearing their community and businesses are being targeted. WSFA 12 News has recently reported on an uptick of robberies at area Hispanic-owned businesses.
In one incident, employees of an ice cream shop on Bell Road, not far from Tuesday night’s triple murder, spoke out after the second robbery in two months.
In another case, a man is recovering after refusing to give robbers money outside a Mexican restaurant on Malcolm Drive. The owner said it’s not the first incident, noting that a suspect once pointed a knife at his wife and ran off with the cash register.
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