West Lafayette man arrested after alleged shooting

A man was arrested Thursday after an alleged shooting in a parking lot near the closed La Hacienda restaurant.
Dontrae Alexander, 36, was arrested on a preliminary charge of aggravated battery after he allegedly shot another person he had been arguing with about 3:30 p.m., according to West Lafayette police.
Local law enforcement personnel stand outside of the closed La Hacienda after responding to a 911 call about a shooting in the area.
Daniel Pike | Photo and Video Editor
Mike Tracy, a witness working in the area at the time of the shooting told the Exponent he saw two people following a third, with one reportedly yelling "You're not going to mess with my niece or cousin ever again!".
Tracy called it a "family dispute," but it's unclear if the argument is related to the reported shooting.
Sgt. Dave Smith told the Exponent there were at least five shots fired. A handgun was recovered nearby, according to a WLPD press release.
A West Lafayette police officer gets back into a patrol car after arriving on the scene of a reported shooting.
Daniel Pike | Photo and Video Editor
Alexander allegedly fled into the woods behind Neon Cactus after the shooting, Tippecanoe County sheriff's deputy Ryne Shoemaker said. He was later arrested by officers on Harrison Memorial Bridge.
The victim reportedly suffered non-life-threatening gunshot wounds to the leg and head and was taken to a local hospital, the release says.
Bystanders were reportedly seen wrapping T-shirts around the victim's head before police arrived on the scene, a witness told the Exponent.
"It was really sad because he was still conscious, and he was like 'I'm gonna die, I'm gonna die, I'm gonna die,'" Adriana Baughman, a bartender at Nine Irish Brothers said. "'And (the crowd around the victim) was like 'You're not gonna die, you're not gonna die.'"
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EXPONENT STAFF
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- Additional reporting contributed by Katie Walling, Vipul Konnur, Quint Holguin, Olivia Mapes, Wil Courtney, Seth Nelson and Vidya Madana
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