A mayoral candidate in Louisville, in the US state of Kentucky, was shot on Monday in the area that only hit his clothes, the man and local police said, who said a person had was taken into custody.
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Craig Greenberg, a Democratic entrepreneur, said at a press conference that he was “shaken” but that he and his team felt “lucky” to be safe.
The candidate said that a man showed up Monday morning at his campaign headquarters, where he was holding a meeting with four members of his team.
“When we greeted him, he pulled out a gun, pointed it directly at me and started shooting,” he said.
“The person closest to the door managed to bravely close the door”, the others barricaded the entrance with tables and “the suspect fled”, he continued.
Louisville Police Chief Erika Shields earlier told reporters that officers evacuated the affected building and no one was injured.
“However, it appears that one person in particular has been targeted and it is one of our mayoral candidates, Craig Greenberg,” she continued. “He was not hit, but it appears that a bullet hit one of his clothes.”
Mr. Greenberg confirmed that a bullet grazed his sweater and his shirt.
A suspect who appears to have acted alone has been taken into custody and the investigation is not ruling out any leads, says Erika Shields: that Mr. Greenberg was targeted because he is Jewish, that his assailant was a mentally ill person or that his motivation was political.
Craig Greenberg, who declined to give details of the alleged shooter so as not to interfere with the investigation, said during his press conference that the incident was an illustration of violence “far too common in our city”.
“There is clearly a lot of work to be done to end this senseless gun violence,” he said.