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Two men shoot woman, boyfriend at closed store
By TAMARA LUSH, Times Staff Writer
TAMPA -- A pregnant woman and her boyfriend were shot in the parking lot of a downtown Tampa convenience store late Sunday night, and police are searching for the attackers. The woman lost her baby after the shooting. Police say Merline Alvarado, 28, and Edwin Gutierrez, 23, drove to the Super Saver Supermarket on E Cass Street at about 10 p.m. The store had been closed for hours, according to authorities. Alvarado's two sons, ages 1 and 3, were in the back seat. At the store, Gutierrez got out of the car. As he walked toward the door, two men approached and one of them pulled a gun, Alvarado told police. Alvarado then got out of the car and tried to intervene. According to a police report, the two men shot her and Gutierrez several times. Each was struck in the abdomen. The suspects left the parking lot and Gutierrez and Alvarado called 911 from a nearby pay phone. Tampa police spokeswoman Katie Hughes said the couple drove themselves to Tampa General Hospital. Both underwent surgery. Alvarado, who lives in Tampa, survived the shooting, but her 16-week-old fetus did not. Both she and Gutierrez are in fair condition, Hughes said. Gutierrez lives in Lakeland. Alvarado's two children were unhurt and have been placed with relatives. Detectives will speak with the couple when they recover, Hughes said.
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