A Los Angeles man visiting North Carolina was met with violence during his stay.
According to Billboard, Pedro Ventura recently visited Asheville, North Carolina to attend a friend’s wedding. Then one night, Ventura was standing outside a club when an unidentified attacker drove by and shot at the establishment’s exterior. While there were about 300 people standing outside the club at the time, Ventura was the only reported victim of the shooting.
The bullet was lodged in his C4 vertebrae and portions of his pine were shattered. This initially led to paralyzing him from the neck down. While Ventura was initially unable to breathe on his own, he has since regained control of his own breathing. In addition, he has started to feel movement in his shoulders.
“Pedro is a fighter, and the love, resources, and support we’re continuing to receive from our friends, communities, and our CAA family is giving him the strength he needs to overcome this,” said Ventura’s boyfriend Ezra Glenn in a statement. “We don’t know what the future holds for Pedro, but given his lifelong record of exceeding expectations, we’re confident he’ll impress us all in his recovery.”
Ventura’s family members and close friends have set up a GoFundMe page to help cover the costs of his extensive medical procedures.
“The road to recovery for Pedro will be long, but he is dedicated to continuing his journey and living a full life,” the GoFundMe page reads. “As we, his immediate family, are still in the wake of this devastating tragedy, it’s difficult to imagine what the future holds, but we know that Pedro will never cease to be the brilliant, beautiful, hardworking, and vivacious man that he is. We simply need to be able to support him along that journey.”
Part of the reason Pedro Ventura’s shooting is getting such wide coverage is because of his connection to the Creative Artists Agency. His work partner and head of music, Rob Light, said the following about Ventura and the shooting:
“Pedro is a bright light in this world whose strength, character and tenacity inspire us every day. He is surrounded by an incredible group of family, friends and colleagues who will support him every step of the way throughout his recovery.”
Currently, there have been no arrests made in relation to the shooting. But according to the Asheville Citizen Times, the police are still searching.
Sources: Billboard, Asheville Citizen Times
