Slaying in NLR is 3rd in week

A North Little Rock man died after he was found shot in an alleyway Saturday, marking the city’s third homicide in a week.

About 1:10 a.m., North Little Rock officers were called to 3405 Pike Ave. at Guanacos Beer, where they found Louis Oswaldo, 20, shot in an alleyway behind the bar, police said. Oswaldo was taken to Baptist Health Medical Center-North Little Rock where he died, police said.

Oswaldo had been in the bar when a fight broke out and he was shot, police spokesman Sgt. Brian Dedrick said. He didn’t elaborate on the shooting. Police did not disclose how many times or where Oswaldo was shot, or what type of weapon was used.

Detectives on Saturday were trying to find witnesses who either saw the shooting or knew about it. Police hadn’t released a suspect description late Saturday.

Oswaldo’s death marked the city’s 10th homicide this year, already equaling last year’s homicide total.

On Wednesday, Samantha Cass, 31, was fatally shot as someone opened fire from the window of a dark maroon Ford F-150 near JFK and McCain boulevards about 7:15 p.m. Cass’ 11-month-old daughter was unharmed in the back seat of her Mazda.

The truck carrying the gunman continued west on McCain Boulevard to West 47th Street before turning left onto Camp Robinson Road. Police on Friday released surveillance footage from a business more than a mile from the shooting and expanded their search for footage or pictures in an attempt to track the truck, which was last seen going south on Pike Avenue.

The truck is described as a four-door, dark maroon Ford F-150 made between 2007 and 2010. The pickup has tinted windows, chrome wheels, possibly a chrome bumper, and a type of workbench, possibly a welder, in the bed.

Last Sunday, two bicyclists on a wooded trail near Batesville Pike found the body of George Zumwalt, 69, with a gunshot wound. His body was under a Maryland Avenue bridge near a creek.

The Police Department is offering an undisclosed cash reward for information that leads to an arrest in Cass’ and Zumwalt’s deaths.

Northwest Arkansas, Pages 8 on 08/19/2013

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