Police in Metro Nashville are currently investigating a shooting incident that occurred on Wednesday night, involving a pregnant woman accused of shoplifting at a drug store in East Nashville.
Homicide detectives are looking into the claim of a Walgreens team leader, identified as 21-year-old Mitarius Boyd, who reportedly shot the suspected shoplifter in the store’s parking lot on Gallatin Avenue around 8 p.m.
The woman, identified as 34-year-old Travonsha Ferguson, who was reportedly seven months pregnant, was taken to Vanderbilt Medical Center where she is currently in critical but stable condition.
Ferguson was critically injured and had to undergo an emergency cesarean section to deliver the child, who is also in critical but stable condition.
Boyd had reportedly seen two women placing items into a store cart and into a large over-the-shoulder bag and followed them out of the store as they exited without paying for the items.
Boyd began recording the women with his cell phone and then approached the rear side of their vehicle as they started to put the items into the trunk.
According to police, Boyd stated that one of the women sprayed him with a can of Mace when he approached them, prompting him to draw his gun and fire shots.
He claimed that he was afraid and uncertain if they were carrying weapons.
The women then drove away from the scene in their vehicle while Boyd re-entered the store and contacted 911.
The other women involved drove her to General Hospital and then left the scene.
The police seized Mitarius Boyd’s gun and cell phone and reported that he fully cooperated with the investigation.
The police will present their findings to the District Attorney’s Office for a decision on whether Boyd will be charged once the investigation is concluded.
21-year-old Mitarius Boyd shot seven months pregnant Travonsha Ferguson, accused of shoplifting at Nashville Walgreens