Beach police don't think Whaley shooting was random

VIRGINIA BEACH

An incident inside a nightspot might have preceded the shooting of Kevin Whaley, the Salem High School football star who was shot in the leg last week, police said.

Whaley, 19, the all-time leading rusher in South Hampton Roads, was shot outside Tri Som Caribbean Restaurant on South Plaza Trail around 2 a.m. Friday. He has refused repeated requests for an interview.

“We think there was some prior involvement between the victim and suspect prior to the shooting,” police spokesman Adam Bernstein said. “We don’t think it was a random drive-by.”

Bernstein added that police are having trouble tracking down the shooter because witnesses and Whaley aren’t telling them much.

“We didn’t get a lot of cooperation in the investigation,” Bernstein said.

Also, police originally said the shooter drove off in a light-colored car, but now they are getting reports that the car was black, Bernstein said.

Whaley has committed to play for the University of Minnesota.

Tim Brewster, coach of the Golden Gophers, said Tuesday that Whaley is doing well and is expected to attend school in the fall.

Aaron Applegate, (757) 222-5122, aaron.applegate@pilotonline.com