Police: Man dies after being shot in head in Gaithersburg

GAITHERSBURG, Md. - Authorities in Montgomery County say a 21-year-old man has died after being shot in Gaithersburg Thursday afternoon.

The shooting happened at around 5:49 p.m. in an alleyway in the 18300 block of Contour Road that separates the Montgomery Village Plaza and Montgomery Village Crossing shopping centers.

Police say DeAndre Smith suffered a gunshot wound to the head. He was transported to a local hospital where he later died from his injuries.

Montgomery County police initially reported the shooting victim was a woman, but during medical treatment, it was determined that the victim was actually a man.

Witnesses told FOX 5's Marina Marraco there were several shots fired in the alleyway. One witness said his car was dented from driving up and down a grassy median dodging trash dumpsters and the gunman.

"The victim was lying on the ground and I drove around the victim to chase [the gunman]," said the witness.

According to another witness, the suspect reloaded the gun, but the trigger jammed up as he tried firing at the oncoming car.

Police are investigating the shooting as a homicide and believe it was a targeted act.

A police helicopter and K-9s were used in the search for the shooter, but there has been no arrest.

Investigators were out at the crime scene for hours on Thursday night scouring the area for evidence, even recovering some from the dumpsters.

Since there are a number of businesses here, police are hoping surveillance cameras caught some video that will shed some light on what exactly took place here.