Staff report
GAINESVILLE, Fla. – Fabian Marcel Rivera, 24, was arrested early this morning and charged with attempted homicide after allegedly shooting a woman near the University of Florida campus.
At about 3:34 a.m., a Gainesville Police Department officer responded to the 1700 block of NW 1st Avenue and found a female victim on the sidewalk with a gunshot to her abdomen. The victim was transported to a hospital and reportedly went straight into surgery.
The officer’s investigation found that the victim was with the alleged shooter and two other people who all claimed to be acquaintances of the victim. The first witness said he had been sitting in the driver’s seat of his parked vehicle, looking at his cell phone; he said Rivera was in the front passenger seat of his vehicle and the victim was standing outside the open driver’s door.
The first witness said he keeps a Glock 26 handgun in the center console of his vehicle, and while he was looking at his phone, he heard a loud bang and saw the victim on the ground. He said he turned to his right and saw Rivera holding the Glock 26, then he got out to help the victim.