PORTSMOUTH, Va. – Monday was business as usual at Ginos Pizzeria in Portsmouth.

Andre Dailey was not bothered by the police activity that occurred a few hours earlier near his business.

“There are things I’m not afraid of. We can’t be afraid of things like that because we all have guns here,” Dailey said.

Watch: Person shoots at police officers in downtown Portsmouth and bullets hit police vehicle

Person shoots at Portsmouth police officers, shoots at police car

As News 3 reported, Portsmouth police said officers responded to a report of shots fired near High and Dinwiddie St. around 2 a.m.

During the investigation, according to police, a man fired shots in the direction of the officers. No police officers were hit, but a police car was.

Police say after being fired upon, the officers “challenged” the suspect, which police say means the officers drew their guns but did not fire.

“This was a targeted event,” Portsmouth Police Chief Stephen Jenkins said.

Watch: Portsmouth Police Chief Addresses Recent Crimes; says he needs 90 more officers

Portsmouth Police Chief Addresses Recent Crimes; says he needs 90 more officers

Jenkins said Vega was from Windsor, Virginia, and came to Portsmouth because he was unhappy with the police in Portsmouth.

“He had conversations with us in interviews and statements to police about the violence that engulfed the city. He didn’t feel like the police were doing enough and he was going to teach us a lesson,” Jenkins said.

Jenkins said Vega was walking around with a shotgun and an AR-style rifle, one of which had been stolen out of state, and fired sixteen shots from the rifle at the police car. How many times the car was actually hit was still under investigation Monday afternoon.

Whether or not he is allowed to possess firearms was also under investigation Monday. Jenkins said Vega was well known to law enforcement in Hampton Roads.

Watch: Portsmouth Police Chief Says Getting Shot Won’t Stop Cops From Doing Their Job

Portsmouth police chief says getting shot won’t stop them from doing their job

The chief said Vega also shot and damaged a camera because he didn’t like people in town.

Dailey thinks the police are doing a good job patrolling the downtown area. But one person – who didn’t want to be on TV – works at another company and thinks crime is out of control.

“I would tell them that as a city and a police department, we are doing everything we can to make our community, especially our business area, safe,” Jenkins said when asked what he would say to people concerned about the situation. crime in the city center.

Watch: Portsmouth residents outraged by recent instances of violence in the city

Portsmouth residents outraged by recent instances of violence in the city

News 3 asked Dailey if he planned to make any changes in response to the shooting.

“We’ll wait and see what the weather brings us,” Dailey said.