THE shooting of a man in west Belfast on Wednesday happened when a gunman fired indiscriminately into a crowd watching a car racing along the Falls Road.
Aaron Carlin, known as Arnie, was hit in both legs when four shots were fired at a group of young people on the busy thoroughfare.
The attack happened at a time when traffic was passing and many people were using the nearby Falls Leisure Centre.
A video posted online shows a silver Volkswagen being driven at high speed and performing handbrake turns along the road, with motorists swerving to avoid a collision.
The injured man, aged in his early 20s, had been standing in a crowd of around 30 people close to a republican memorial garden, some filming the car on mobile phones.
Four shots are then heard being fired in quick succession.
An eyewitness said a man dressed in dark clothing came from nearby Ross Road and crouched down, firing from the bottom of an alleyway into the group at leg level, before running off.
Mr Carlin was struck in the legs and taken to the Royal Victoria Hospital for injuries which are not believed to be life threatening.
No organisation had last night claimed responsibility for the gun attack.
Police said just over an hour later a stolen car collided with a police vehicle in the nearby Cullingtree area, injuring two officers.
The car, a silver Volkswagen, had been reported stolen in the Castlereagh area following a suspected creeper-style burglary early on Wednesday.
A 17-year-old man was arrested and charged with offences including aggravated vehicle taking in which a vehicle is being driven dangerously, failing to stop, theft and driving without disqualified. He is due to appear before Belfast Youth Court this morning.
Police said they are "investigating reports that a similar vehicle was driving erratically in the Falls Road area at the time of an earlier shooting incident on Wednesday evening".
Detective Inspector Mary White said: "There is only one police service in west Belfast, and that’s the Police Service of Northern Ireland.
"We are on duty 24 hours a day, seven days every week, protecting the public and serving the local community."
She appealed to "all members of the west Belfast community, if you witnessed anything to come forward to detectives at Musgrave on the non-emergency number 101" or anonymously to Crimestoppers on 0800 555 111.
Meanwhile, a teenager was shot in the leg in a paramilitary-style attack in west Belfast last night.
The 16-year-old was shot on Forest Street off Springfield Road. It is thought to have taken place at around 8.45pm.
