Gunfire broke out early Sunday in Fresno’s Tower District after a group of uninvited guests was turned away from a rap music video shoot at an Airbnb, touching off an exchange of gunfire that left two businesses damaged but no one hurt.
The shooting happened around 2:24 a.m. near Fulton Street and Dennett Avenue. At least 10 rounds were fired.
The Fresno Police Department said a studio in the area was being used to film a rap video when several people who were denied entry left and opened fire, striking the exterior of a business on Fulton Avenue.
“Officers determined a studio in the area was used to film a rap video. Several individuals who were denied entry left the location and fired multiple rounds, striking the exterior of a business on Fulton Ave. It appears there was an exchange of gunfire,” the Fresno Police Department said.
Police said no injuries have been reported and the investigation is ongoing, including a review of any prior calls for service at the location.
Surveillance video captured two groups arguing in front of a home moments before one person opened fire. A nail studio owner who arrived Sunday found a bullet on the floor and a bullet hole in her wall. A nearby business had to board up a shattered window, according to ABC 30.
The incident follows a shooting outside a nightclub in the same Tower District about a week earlier that left two people seriously wounded. That gunfire erupted during a Halloween-themed “zombie crawl” bar crawl, when police in the area heard nine shots fired outside MIA Nightclub.
Fresno Mayor Jerry Dyer had announced new safety measures for the district just days before, on October 21, including increased police patrols and brighter street lighting.
“We don’t want any violence… we’re all in this together, and we have zero tolerance for violence in the Tower,” Dyer said.
The numbers suggest the mayor’s push comes amid a worsening trend. Fresno recorded 128 shooting incidents by this point last year. This year, the city has already logged 132.
