Mayport’s CO increases security at off-base housing following shooting

Jacksonville, FL — Three buildings were hit, but luckily nobody was hurt in a shooting at Naval Station Mayport off-base housing Thursday night.

As the investigation of that incident takes place, Mayport’s Commanding Officer isn’t taking any chances.

“I have directed increased security presence in the vicinity of off-base housing and the Child Development Centers,” says Captain David Yoder.

He says that will include patrols occasionally stationed at the housing entrance, more patrols throughout, and security sometimes stopping people to ask for credentials and a reason for being there.

“I will use all of the available resources that I have to enhance that security while the investigation is ongoing in to the causal factors of last night’s shooting,” Yoder says.

The incident report from the Jacksonville Sheriff’s Office says the gunfire came from two suspects in a black sedan, which then sped away through the complex in a manner that some witnesses described as reckless. Police say three homes were hit by bullets, including two that were occupied at the time. One home flooded, because a bullet hit a water line.

One of the witnesses told police he was on his back porch when he saw three young men meeting near the playground area. The heavily redacted incident report makes it difficult to determine the exact nature of how many people were involved and the subsequent events, but it shows there was one man that a witness described as appearing to be running for his life, and a car racing around to potentially try to cut off that man.

Multiple witnesses described seeing a black vehicle in connection to this incident, with a few specifically saying sedan. Witnesses also reported seeing two people in the vehicle.

Yoder is urging anyone with information on what happened to come forward, while calling on everyone in the Mayport community to keep their eyes open.

“Remain focused on being vigilant when you see something that isn’t quite right or doesn’t look quite right. And if you see something that’s not right, please call 911 and inform law enforcement, so we can respond,” he says.

In addition to contacting JSO with any information you may have, Yoder says you can also call Mayport’s Security Department Detective Charles Smith at 904-237-0289.