Henderson residents question safety after three people shot and killed in the same neighborhood

Henderson Police shared that three people were shot and killed in the same Henderson neighborhood in less than 24 hours, leaving residents in adjacent apartment complexes questioning whether their community is safe.

Parents in the neighborhood tell me they don't know how to explain this violence to their children. I'm on Center Street at the Cascade Apartments, which is right next door to the shooting that happened Thursday.

Steve Smith didn't expect to wake up Friday morning to police tape surrounding his home.

"Woke up and my wife was like, 'Man, the police is outside.' I was getting my kids ready to school," Smith said.

He tells me he couldn't take his kids to school because his car was in the middle of the crime scene, blocked off by crime tape a vision he says is hard to explain to young children.

"The coroners have to come and things like that. So there's just some things as a parent that you would want to shield your kids from," Smith said.

Henderson police say 22-year-old Andre Thigpen Jr. is accused of fatally shooting a man and woman inside their home at Cascade Apartments Friday morning. According to police, he was arrested a short time later following a hit-and-run crash, and was booked on two counts of open murder and charges for the crash.

Just a day before, a 40-year-old woman was shot and killed at the Harmon Apartments right next door. Henderson police say they are still looking for the shooter.

It was just last week, on Oct. 14, when Mayor Michelle Romero addressed the state of crime during her State of the City.

"Crimes against citizen is down 7%, property crimes are down 13%, and violent crime is down 18%," Romero said.

When asked if the two cases were connected, Henderson police addressed the question.

"No connection that as we see so far," Capt. Haven Tillmon said.

Smith said he moved his family to the Cascade Apartments so his children could grow up in a safe neighborhood. He's now second-guessing his decision.

"It definitely got got me and the neighbors shook up. Like you know, is it is it time to relocate?" Smith said.

Smith, like many neighbors I spoke with, says he wants reassurance from police that his family is safe. Henderson police are investigating all three shootings. As of right now, only one arrest has been made in Friday's shooting.

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