NJ gunman opens fire in car; 2 killed, 3 wounded

CAMDEN, N.J. (AP) - A masked man carrying a gun and a machete entered a parked car and opened fire on five young adults inside, killing the driver and a passenger and wounding the others, then pushed aside the driver's body and drove off with four of the victims inside, authorities said, in a startling burst of violence even for a city consistently ranked as one of the nation's most dangerous.

It was not clear whether the gunman knew anyone in the car or what sparked the shooting late Saturday, Camden County prosecutor's spokesman Jason Laughlin said. The gunman eventually fled and remained at large Sunday, authorities said.

The car was parked in an alley when the masked man approached and got in on the driver's side, Laughlin said. He fired several shots, killing the 18-year-old driver, Jewel Manire, and Khalil Gibson, 20, of Camden.

The spray of bullets wounded a 20-year-old woman in the face, a 16-year-old in the head and another 16-year-old in the arm, Laughlin said.

After the gunman stopped shooting, he pushed aside Manire's body and drove off with all the victims inside except the teenager who was shot in the arm. She had managed to escape and called 911.

The car was driven to a nearby dirt road, where the 20-year-old woman also jumped out and ran off. The gunman briefly pursued her but could not catch her, and he soon ran away.

He was described as Hispanic and about 6 feet tall. He wore a black mask over the lower part of his face and yellow latex gloves.

All three wounded victims remained in the hospital Sunday, two in critical condition.