Newly released court documents are providing additional insight into the events surrounding a mass shooting at the Zephyr Pointe Apartments in northwest Reno that left seven people injured.
Just after midnight on Oct. 7, 2023, the Reno Police Department received 16 9-1-1 calls reporting a shooting that left several people wounded at the apartment complex. Seven victims ended up going to Renown Regional Medical Center for treatment.
According to the documents, officers had already been dispatched to the complex around 10:40 p.m. the night before on reports of approximately 20 underage individuals causing a noise disturbance.
When officers arrived, they reported hearing two separate volleys of gunfire. One responding officer observed two individuals dressed in black clothing and wearing facemasks running toward a silver Honda Accord. The officer entered her patrol vehicle, approached the car with her weapon drawn, and ordered the driver to stop. The driver instead reversed out of a parking space and fled south through the complex. The officer attempted to pursue but lost sight of the vehicle.
A small birthday party with only three guests was planned, according to detectives. However, after the location was shared on Snapchat, between 20 and 25 people arrived.
Investigators said a group of partygoers left after about 30 minutes to visit a nearby 7-Eleven. When they returned and walked to the third floor of one of the buildings, they encountered the suspects before the shooting.
One witness described the suspects as Black male teenagers, between approximately 5 feet 5 inches and 6 feet tall, wearing black hoodies and black Corona facemasks. One suspect was firing four to six shots.
Police said one witness was unwilling to cooperate further, but investigators identified at least one involved party as a known member of the Money Over Bitches, or “MOB,” gang set. According to Reno police, MOB is battling with the Money Team Affiliated, or “9s,” another Blood-affiliated gang.
At approximately 9 a.m. on Oct. 7, an officer with the Regional Gang Unit observed a white 2013 Chevrolet sedan parked in the complex that the officer believed was connected to the shooting. During a traffic stop, the officer reportedly observed ammunition on the floorboard behind the driver’s seat matching the caliber and brand recovered at the scene, along with an empty ammunition tray.
Though booked into the Washoe County Jail, the suspect’s name was not on the probable cause document.
Police also searched an apartment belonging to another individual believed to have taken part in the shootings, where investigators located a bag containing a Glock user manual and an empty 20-round box of 9mm Sig Sauer ammunition.
Later that day, officers conducting surveillance observed Frank Hewitt arriving at a residence in a Hyundai. Police said he appeared to be attempting to conceal his identity.
They arrested Hewitt and, earlier this month, was convicted of seven counts of attempted murder, five counts of battery with a deadly weapon, two counts of child abuse with a deadly weapon, and additional charges related to the shooting.
A second suspect, Chemarion Cooks, was arrested Feb. 19. He faces seven counts of attempted murder with a deadly weapon, five counts of battery with a deadly weapon resulting in substantial bodily harm, child abuse with a deadly weapon, and discharging a firearm into a structure.
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