Police were called to two killings late Christmas Eve in North Little Rock in less than an hour.
North Little Rock investigators said the fatal shooting of Alex Brooks at the Shorter College Gardens housing complex and the shooting death of an unidentified man found on East Broadway were not connected.
So far, authorities have made no arrests in the slayings, Police Department spokesman Sgt. Brian Dedrick said.
Officers first went to the public housing complex at 800 N. Beech St. shortly after 10 p.m. in response to a report of shots fired.
When police arrived, they found Brooks, 33, lying on the grass between two housing units on the complex's northeast corner.
Dedrick said investigators were unsure if Brooks lived in the complex or was visiting, nor were they aware of the circumstances that led to the man's killing.
The Police Department has assigned several full-time officers to the grounds, Dedrick said, but the spokesman said that the officer assigned had already ended his shift before the shooting occurred.
On Thursday, the complex was lively. Traffic came in and out of the lone gated entryway, crime scene tape hung from a dumpster packed with boxes and torn Christmas wrapping paper. Children ran up and down the area where Brooks was found, but none of the residents nearby claimed to know anything about the shooting or Brooks.
A resident at the complex who said he feared to be identified in the newspaper said he heard about four to five gunshots shortly after 10 p.m.
When he stepped outside, he saw investigators and crime scene technicians milling around a gray car, both its passenger and driver-side doors flung open, not far from where Brooks' body was found.
Dedrick was unable to verify whether investigators processed a car or if the car was related to the shooting.
About 10:49 p.m., officers took another call to a residence at 2720 E. Broadway, located near the Broadway Motel, more than a mile from Brooks' shooting.
Dedrick said the call came from a resident who came home to find the gunshot victim at the resident's home.
Detectives obtained a warrant and searched the home, but Dedrick said that officers didn't find any weapons or contraband in the search.
It was unclear if the victim also lived there, Dedrick said. Police are waiting until they can find the victim's family before releasing the victim's name.
As of Thursday afternoon, investigators had not pieced together a motive behind either shooting, Dedrick said, nor did they have any information about suspects.
Wednesday night's killings raised the tally of 2014 homicides in North Little Rock to 10.
There were a total of 13 killings in North Little Rock in 2013.
Metro on 12/26/2014