A woman has been shot in the arm by two masked offenders, one holding a gun, at a Gateshead unit overnight on Tuesday.
Lake Macquarie Police District officers were told two women and two men were leaving the Paper Street unit about 8.45pm on Tuesday when they were approached by two people with their faces covered.
Police were told two shots were fired at the group, one of which struck a 50-year-old woman in her right upper arm and another round struck the window of the unit.
All six people then left the scene.
Officers were not told about the shooting until about 35 minutes later, when a crime scene was established and police began searching the nearby area.
A neighbour, who wished to remain anonymous for safety reasons, said he heard what sounded like two gun shots.
"I heard two shots and I actually thought they were crackers, then I heard a car driving off and that was it," he said.
"I wasn't told until this morning by one of the other neighbours that a person got shot."
The neighbour said he had lived in the area for years and said this was the first time an incident like this has happened.
Police made inquiries and found the injured woman at a Charlestown home. The woman was then taken to John Hunter Hospital by ambulance, where she remains in a stable condition.
A second woman, aged 38, remains at a police station as inquiries continue to establish the circumstances that led to the incident.
Detectives have appealed to anyone with information about, or vision of the incident, to contact Belmont Police Station or Crime Stoppers on 1800 333 000.
