The shooting of a pregnant woman Wednesday night inside an East Nashville drugstore on suspicion of theft is being investigated by Metro Nashville police. Police say just before 8 p.m., a Walgreens team leader named Mitarius Boyd, 21, shot the suspected shoplifter in the parking lot of the Gallatin Avenue store, claiming he was acting in state of self-defense.
Police say Travoirsha Ferguson, 34, seven months pregnant, is currently being treated at Vanderbilt Medical Center in critical but stable condition.
The infant was born by emergency caesarean section; he was not hit by gunfire and is now in critical but stable condition, police said.
Police say their investigation reveals Boyd was tipped off by another employee that two ladies were robbing the merchandise store. He insisted that he observed the women loading goods into a shopping cart and a large shoulder bag.
According to authorities, he then began recording the women with his mobile phone and followed them out of the store without paying for the merchandise. Boyd claimed that when he approached the back of the car, the women began to load things into the trunk.
Boyd said after one of the ladies sprayed him with Mace, he pulled out his gun and started shooting.
Police said the man claimed to be terrified and unsure of his armed status. After leaving the area in their car, the women. Boyd then returned to the store and called 911.
Ferguson was taken to General Hospital by the other women before they left. Ferguson was transported by paramedics to Vanderbilt Medical Center with multiple gunshot wounds. Boyd allegedly cooperated with officers, and his rifle and cellphone were taken.
Detectives will present their findings to the district attorney’s office when the investigation is complete to see if Boyd will be charged.