PORTSMOUTH, Va. — Police are investigating a double murder and suicide in Portsmouth involving service members.
According to Portsmouth Police, a call came in Saturday night around 11 about a shooting at the 7-Eleven on Effingham Street. When officers arrived, they found three people dead on-scene.
Two women were found with gunshot wounds to their torsos in the 7-Eleven parking lot at 1811 Effingham Street.
NCIS identified the two women as 19-year-old Shianne Soles from Veradale, Washington and 23-year-old Meaghan Burns from Massachusetts. Soles and Burns were active duty military and stationed at Naval Medical Center Portsmouth.
Officers were then directed to a vehicle in the parking lot of the Dollar General at 1711 Effingham Street. Police found the driver, a man, suffering from a self-inflicted injury to his upper body.
Neighbor Sebrina Brown said she heard the gunshots that night, and she’s devastated the girls are gone.
"I'm heartbroken that the shots that I heard took the lives of two young ladies. And just to find out they're so young, nineteen and in their twenties, I mean they were just at the 7-11 trying to buy some items and get back out. They were waylaid by the gunshots,” said Brown.
Brown said she went over to the scene to see if she could do anything to help, but at that point, the women were gone.
"I did see about 6 gunshots in the driver's side and that's just because the police left the door ajar so we could see that,” said Brown.
NCIS identified the man as 22-year-old Donavon Moora from New York. Moora was active duty military stationed at Camp LeJeune in North Carolina.
"Finding out now that they were military, I mean we honor our military, they put their lives at risk. Honestly, I know how traumatic it is to find out that your loved one is lost. So, I prayed for the two young ladies, and I didn't know about the gentleman at the time, but I pray for his family as well, because pain is pain,” said Brown. "It's very unfortunate it would happen to anyone, but especially those young lives that had so much probably before them and were serving our country."
Our sister station KREM received the following statement from Shianne Soles family:
Shianne Taylor Soles was a bright light that would flood the room wherever she went. Her smile was contagious and her laughter was infectious. She was a friend to everyone that met her and never turned down anyone that needed help, day or night. She touched the lives of many. She had a passion to be a part of something bigger. Something where she could help make the world a better place. This led her to pursue a career in the Navy as a Corpsman, beginning her career at the Naval Medical Center in Portsmouth VA. Her desire to excel in everything she did led her to many different adventures. From dance to cheer, track and work, school and Navy, she excelled in all that she did. She was driven, focused, and brave until her light faded too soon. There are no words that can describe the pain we feel or the pain that we see within our support group around us. The words we have received have stretched far and wide and we cannot thank everyone enough. Thank you for respecting our need for privacy during this time of mourning.
The triple shooting has neighbors like Wilbert Gore on edge.
"You hear gunshots pretty well everywhere here in Portsmouth, but when they get pretty close, like a block away, sure we're concerned," Gore said. "The elderly people here try to go out early during the course of the day and when it gets dark, they try to get back in or have somebody close by."
Portsmouth police held a Reset walk to talk with neighbors in the community about what happened, but Gore said what really needs to happen is that neighbors need to support one another.
“All we can do is try to keep our eyes open, try to stay together and try to be a watcher for each other," said Gore.
Another neighbor, Christopher Howell, said he saw the shooting and was the one who called the police.
"If I would have gone over there, or if anyone else went over there to stop him, who knows he could have turned around and shot another person," said Howell.
Portsmouth detectives are working with the assistance of NCIS as they continue to investigate the circumstances surrounding the case. Investigators are assuring the public that this was an isolated incident.