Seven teens shot on Detroit's west side

Detroit -- Seven people were shot this afternoon near a bus stop and gas station on Detroit's west side and police are searching for two shooters believed to still be in the area.
At 2:30 p.m., two men were seen approaching the teens -- including four boys and three girls, ages 14-17 -- at the bus stop at the Southfield Freeway service drive and West Warren Avenue, Detroit police said.

The suspects fired roughly 15 rounds of ammunition, then ran away. Police believe they then got into a green minivan. The men are still believed to be in the area, Detroit police said.

The teens are recovering at several area hospitals. Three were in listed in critical condition, one was in serious condition, one was in temporary serious condition, and two were stable, second deputy chief Rob Liggons said.

Steve Hakim, owner of the B&B Shell gas station in Detroit saw the entire incident. He said he saw two youths run across his lot, their shirts pulled over their heads. Then they opened fire on a group of students standing at a bus stop.

"I saw the whole thing," said Hakim, 49 of Farmington Hills. "(After the shots rang out, the victims) just collapsed; fell down. It was pretty scary."

Liggons said investigators are still trying to piece together what was said, and it's unknown whether the shooting was random. The area of the shooting is known for high gang activity.

Witnesses in the area said the shooting was a continuation of an argument that began Monday at the Cody Ninth Grade Academy.

Haidar Algarawi, 24, of Dearborn Heights who works at a nearby gas station, said at the scene: "I heard a bunch of shots, then I saw a guy running westbound down Warren."

Police are interviewing witnesses and reviewing footage from security cameras in the area, Liggons said.

Of those shot, at least four were Detroit Public Schools students and a former student who had just left the academy, said Detroit Public Schools spokesman Steve Wasko.

Cody principal Jonathan Matthews said there were no problems at the school earlier.

"Today was a normal day at school. There was nothing that happened (out of the ordinary)," Matthews said.

At about 5 p.m. police began letting traffic in the area through after it had backed up for blocks; they also took the police tape down from the gas station.