A man and a woman were injured after a shooting outside Southampton Rangers Sports Club shortly after 8.30pm last night.

“Details are still emerging but it appears that a male on a motorcycle rode into the parking area of the club and discharged a firearm,” Bermuda Police Service spokesman Dwayne Caines said.

“As a result two individuals, a male and female, were shot. Both victims were transported to the hospital where they are being treated for injures that do not appear to be life threatening.”

A large police presence descended swiftly on the premises, and the club was cordoned off late into the evening.

Reacting in a statement today, shadow national security minister Jeff Baron urged the island to tackle the gang violence problem which is blighting young black men.

“The indiscriminate shooting into a crowd at Rangers club last night is horrifying. The toll each incident like this takes on our community is significant and long-lasting.

“My family and I pray for a speedy recovery for the victims and all of those affected.”

Mr Baron said people had lost sight of the real issue while discussing the selection of Pastor Leroy Bean as gang violence reduction coordinator this week.

He said: “We made this issue about a name — a person. We lost the chance to talk about the real issues. I regret that. What we should be talking about are these raw, undeniable facts.”

The MP said these include:

• black Bermudian males make up 27 per cent of Bermuda’s population, but make up 98 per cent of all homicides over the past decade, and 100 per cent of firearms homicides;

• this June, there were a total of 191 inmates in all corrections facilities, including just three white Bermudians;

• 51 young black males have been convicted in the past few years and will serve significant time behind bars; 25 young black males are now serving life sentences, compared with six in 1986;

• about 220 Bermudians have relocated to Britain, including many young black males to avoid violence and gang tensions;

• 130 people have been injured by hot bullets entering their bodies.

Mr Baron continued: “Our reality? We are losing a demographic of our society. We’ve lost too many already. Instead of being a source for leadership and transformation politics has been roadblock.

“It’s wrong to make gang violence about one person or one agency. It’s right to talk about the reality of the raw data together. Ignoring it or not knowing it is not good enough.

“It’s wrong to engage in sustained political feuds over government’s appointment when blood splashes our pavement. Its right to question, hold to account, and quickly move forward by supporting whoever serves this critical role.

“Gang violence reduction is not about a name or person — it’s not about Leroy, Chae, Wayne of Jeff. If we want to make violence about names consider these: Haile, Lorenzo, Prince, Rickai, Jahni, Fiqre, Joshua, Stefan, Kumi, Randy — and this heartbreaking list goes on.

“Whose names will be on the list next week, month or year? That, not anything else, deserves our collective, total focus from the body politic and from the community.”

Police are appealing for witnesses to call 295-0011.

Alternatively, anyone with information can call the confidential Crimestoppers hotline, 800-8477.