SUFFOLK, Va (WVEC) — The suspect who shot a man after an argument, that witnesses said was about Aretha Franklin, claims he did it in self-defense.
Newly filed court documents said Michael Hatton shot Tony Lundy three times Thursday morning. A bullet to the back collapsed Lundy’s lung, and another to the abdomen forced a part of his small intestine to be removed, according to paperwork.
The criminal complaint said it started when Hatton and Lundy got into a fight inside the Beamons Unisex Salon off E Washington Street.
Witnesses said Lundy started the fight, and at one point, the paperwork said he got on top of Hatton.
When the victim got off him, Hatton pulled out a gun and followed Lundy outside.
Officers found him Lundy shot and critically injured in the street.
Documents said Hatton shot because Lundy was coming toward him. Hatton told detectives that he "Was in fear of his life."
Lundy remains hospitalized in critical condition.
"It was very emotional seeing him lying there like that," said a lifelong friend of Lundy’s who did not want to be identified.
She told 13News Now the 47-year-old is well-known in the Suffolk community and was a former standout basketball player.
"I just hate seeing him [hurt] like that because he's such a big, strong tall guy," she said.
Lundy's family and friends are currently avoiding the headlines and waiting for more answers into what exactly happened.
"Pretty much, it's hearsay until I actually get an opportunity to talk to him and hear his side of the story," the friend said.
Hatton faces a total of four felony charges. He’s being held at the Western Tidewater Regional Jail without bond.
► Make it easy to keep up to date with more stories like this. Download the 13News Now App.