Violence growing in Baltimore

BALTIMORE (AP) - Gunmen jumped out of two vans and fired at a group of people a few blocks from an urban university campus, killing three and adding to Baltimore's growing list of homicides.

Police said Wednesday that the shooting wasn't random, but no arrests had been made.

The two vans - one burgundy and one white - pulled to the side of a road near the University of Maryland, Baltimore, campus Tuesday night, police said. One gunman got out of each and began firing, campus police said.

Police say they believe the shooting was targeted, and the school - with about 6,000 students and a focus on graduate and professional education - said there's no indication students were involved.

Officers responded about 10:30 p.m. and found three people with gunshot wounds in the residential neighborhood of West Baltimore, Detective Rashawn Strong said. One was pronounced dead at the scene, and two died later at a hospital. A fourth person sought treatment for a gunshot wound to the buttocks and was in stable condition.

With the three deaths and a separate fatal stabbing overnight, Baltimore's homicide total this year is 155, according to police. That's a 48 percent increase compared with the same time last year. Shootings have increased 86 percent. The city has seen a spike in violence since the April death of Freddie Gray after he was injured in police custody. The incident received widespread national attention and sparked unrest across Baltimore.

Tuesday's shooting was the second in the block in a week, according to campus police. On Thursday, a passenger was injured when the rear window of a moving vehicle was shot.

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