Lancaster Police Investigating Deadly Shooting at Restaurant

One man is dead and a woman is injured following a shooting the parking lot of an IHOP along Interstate 35 in Lancaster Sunday afternoon.

Police responded to a shooting in progress just before 2 p.m. and found a man dead in the parking lot. A woman who was injured is expected to survive. The gunman left the scene, but later turned himself in to police in Duncanville.

Witnesses describe panic inside the restaurant when the shooting began outside.

"The gun sounded so loud, it was like it was echoing inside the restaurant as well," said Demontre Jones.

Jones and A.L. Owens say they were sitting in a booth near the front windows when they saw the gunman kill an employee.

"All of a sudden I heard a gunshot and as I looked out the window, I saw the young man as he was falling down," said Owens. "And the other guy pumping three more bullets into him."

Owens said a female employee in the parking lot was bleeding from the hand. People in the restaurant rushed for the back exit, unsure if the gunman would enter the building.

According to police, the suspected gunman drove away from the scene and later surrendered at the Duncanville Police Department.

The identities of those involved have not been released.

Friends of the victim who was killed told NBC 5 he was an aspiring photographer and in his early 20s. 

The investigation is ongoing, police said.

Contact Us