David Van Dyke shoots Avery Collier dead following argument at West Nashville Target outlet. Two men did not know each other. Victim shot multiple times while on the ground.
A Tennessee man has been charged with criminal homicide after reportedly shooting and killing a man inside a Target outlet in West Nashville Sunday night.
David Van Dyke, 29, was charged with criminal homicide in the Sunday night shooting of Avery Collier, 40, the Metro Nashville Police Department said in a released statement.
Investigators said that the two men ‘had words’ in the front of the store when Collier and his girlfriend arrived. A few minutes later, the two got into a second ‘verbal altercation’ near the electronics department, leading to Van Dyke drawing a gun from a distance and shooting Collier in front of his girlfriend.
Police said Collier, who died at the scene, collapsed, ‘and Van Dyke continued shooting at him.’ Collier was not carrying a weapon. Police said that Collier and Van Dyke did not know one another WKRN reported.
Surveillance video captured the shooting which occurred just before 7:15 p.m.
‘really good basketball player,’
After the shooting, Van Dyke left the store with other patrons and his car, police said. When officers arrived, Van Dyke returned to the store, put his gun into a planter, and told police he had shot the man, telling the same story during an interview at police headquarters.
The ‘incident’ led to the store being closed and evacuated. The retail outlet re-opened Monday morning, NewsChannel 5 reported.
Collier’s friends described the victim as a ‘really good basketball player,’ kind, and even ‘bubbly.’
‘He was a really good basketball player, a really nice guy and family man,’ Josh Cooperwood said. ‘I would never expect something like this to happen to Avery.’
It remained unclear what led to the dispute escalating to gun violence.
Van Dyke remains held on $1 million bond.
