East Hartford Man Killed in Hartford Shooting

Hartford police said 37-year-old Dante Barnes of East Hartford was fatally shot late Monday, May 18, on Cabot Street near a Shell gas station in the city’s North End. Officers responded at about 11:18 p.m. after hearing gunshots in the area and found Barnes unresponsive in the roadway with multiple gunshot wounds, according to Lt. Aaron Boisvert. EMS took Barnes to a hospital, where he was pronounced dead, police said. The killing is being investigated by the department’s Major Crimes and Crime Scene divisions. ### Where did police find Dante Barnes? The 80 block of Cabot Street was the scene officers responded to late Monday night, Hartford police said. News footage and police accounts placed Barnes in the roadway near the Shell station at the corner of Albany Avenue and Cabot Street when officers arrived. (wtnh.com) WTNH reported police tape remained up around the gas station Tuesday morning as investigators processed the area. Hartford police said ballistic evidence was collected at the scene for forensic testing. ### How did officers come upon the shooting? Lt. Aaron Boisvert told WTNH that officers were already nearby on an unrelated shots-fired investigation when gunfire erupted across the street. (wtnh.com) He said the shots came from the gas station parking lot area, prompting officers to move to Cabot Street, where they found Barnes. Fox61 and NBC Connecticut both reported that police described the victim as suffering multiple gunshot wounds when he was discovered. Those outlets said Barnes was taken from the scene by EMS and later pronounced dead at the hospital. ### What have police said about the victim? (wtnh.com) Hartford police identified the victim as Dante Barnes, 37, of East Hartford. Multiple local outlets, citing police, reported the same name, age and hometown after the department released his identity on Tuesday. Connecticut news outlets differed on one detail in early reports about Barnes’s age, with one account listing him as 36. (fox61.com) Hartford police spokesman Aaron Boisvert identified him as 37 in other published accounts, and that age was repeated by several local outlets. ### What do investigators say they are doing now? The Hartford Police Department said its Major Crimes and Crime Scene divisions have taken over the case. (stamfordadvocate.com) Police described the homicide investigation as active and ongoing and did not announce any arrest in the initial public updates. (newportdispatch.com) WTNH reported Boisvert said Hartford had recorded nine homicides so far this year, compared with six at the same point last year. That comparison was attributed to Boisvert during his on-camera briefing Tuesday morning. ### How can the public send information? Hartford police asked anyone with information about the shooting to contact the department’s tip line at 860-722-TIPS, or 860-722-8477. (fox61.com) Police repeated that request in statements carried by several local outlets covering the homicide. As of the latest published reports on May 19, detectives had not publicly identified a suspect or described a motive. (wtnh.com) The next public updates are likely to come from Hartford police as the Major Crimes investigation continues. (fox61.com)