Police arrested a man suspected of shooting a woman in the face as she left Kelly's on Campbell Avenue in West Haven early Sunday morning after the two had an argument inside the bar.
Police were called to 142 Campbell Ave. near the intersection with Noble Street around 2:50 a.m. Sunday for a report of a person shot.
When they arrived, they found a women in her 40s who had been shot in the face as she exited the bar. The woman was transported to an area hospital and is in stable condition. She is expected to recover.
Witnesses said they saw the suspect across the street from the bar and that he was carrying a shotgun. Police found him in an apartment building, kitty corner to the crime scene, and took him into custody.
They quickly arrested the man, who had a confrontation with the victim earlier in the night inside of Kelly's bar at 144 Campbell Ave. The suspect has been identified as Edward Corradino, 47, of Campbell Street in West Haven. He was charged with criminal attempt to commit murder, reckless endangerment, unlawful discharge of a firearm, first-degree assault, criminal attemptt to commit assault, and breach of peace.
"He came out to the police and through the investigation we were able to determine he was most likely who we were looking for," West Haven Det. Sgt. Paul Raucci said.
Evelyn Batchelder, who lives near the shooting site, said that more than one shot was fired.
“All these shots, and I didn’t know what it was. I thought maybe somebody was doing fireworks, cause that’s what they do around here, but no, it was an innocent person getting shot," Batchelder said. "It was awful. It's like, why would you shoot someone? At a bar, no less."
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Investigators remain on scene taking photographs of the crime scene and collecting evidence. Gun casings strewn across the sidewalk and the street were marked as evidence.
"There's very little that the police can do without the help of the public. Fortunately, this is a very active area of town," Raucci said.
The names of the victim has not been released, but patrons said that the suspect was a regular at the bar. They were surprised to hear he was involved and even more shocked that the shooting happened right outside the business.
"There was never anything nasty in there. Never anything," Batchelder said.
The bar's owners had no comment. A neighboring business owner at Elizabeth's Creations, who has been running her dress shop for three decades, said she's noticed more crime in the area recently. Her neighbors agree.
"I don't want to get killed either," Batchelder said. "Oh my god, why is it happening around here?"
Police said that the shooting wasn't a random act of violence, but said they are concerned with an uptick in more violent crimes in the area.
"A lot of the picture is pretty clear to us right now," police said of the shooting.
No further details were immediately available on what the two were arguing about or the shooting incident. Corradino is expected to appear in court Monday.
