A Manteca man who was reportedly visiting residents in a triplex in the 700 block of South Union Road Sunday afternoon was shot by an unknown gunman, police said.

A Manteca Police spokesman said Dwayne Harris, 29, had been shot in the leg about 3 p.m. He was found on the ground outside the first of three apartment units when officers arrived. The apartment is located on the east side of Union Road north of Wawona Avenue.

Officers said it was too early to determine whether the shooting had been gang-related; however it reportedly followed some type of argument between the victim and the shooter.

One witness said it appeared the bullet may have pierced the femoral artery in the man’s leg because of the large amount of blood loss from the wound. Harris was transported by ambulance to Doctors Medical Center trauma unit in Modesto in a red-lights-and-siren run.

As is normally the case with a shooting incident when the scene has not been cleared by officers, the fire units and a Manteca ambulance were ordered by a dispatcher to stage a block away until police could establish control of the crime scene and guarantee their safety.

Sgt. Lewis Clark said he did not have any preliminary information on the shooter that would lead to his identity. Two patrolmen searched the dwelling for about five minutes until they were satisfied the shooting suspect was not hidden out of sight inside the apartment.

Two police detectives were called from home Sunday afternoon and were working to establish leads in the case Sunday night. The victim was reported to be in surgery at the Modesto trauma center at press time.