In the early morning hours of December 10, 2017, the quiet of a Norfolk, Virginia neighborhood was shattered by gunfire. When police responded to a call for a possible gunshot victim in the 1000 block of Ivaloo Street just before 2 a.m., they discovered 31-year-old Claude M. Smith inside a vehicle, suffering from gunshot wounds. Medics transported him to Sentara Norfolk General Hospital, where he was pronounced dead.
As the investigation into the shooting unfolded, police discovered a
second male victim inside a nearby home who had also been shot. This individual was taken to the hospital with injuries described as serious but not life-threatening. The incident shocked residents of the normally family-friendly street, which is located within walking distance of Norview Middle School.
The day after the shooting, a suspect was taken into custody. Gary Lee Drew Jr., a 25-year-old Norfolk man, was arrested without incident by the Norfolk Police Fugitive Squad and the U.S. Marshals Fugitive Task Force. Drew was subsequently charged with second-degree murder, malicious wounding, and two counts of use of a firearm in the commission of a felony. He was held in the Norfolk City Jail without bond. The investigation was a collaborative effort between the Norfolk Police Department and the U.S. Marshals.
