A man is in critical condition after what appears to have been a targeted shooting in Winnipeg's West End on Sunday night.

The 36-year-old man has wounds to his upper body, police said.

Officers were called at 9:50 p.m. to the alley between Sherbrook and Maryland streets near the Safeway store on Sargent Avenue.

"At this stage in the investigation, the shooting does not appear to be random," Winnipeg police said in a news release Monday.

A woman who lives in the area told CBC News she heard two gunshots, followed by a man yelling, "Help me."

Police blocked off the alley that runs along the back of properties on Maryland and Sherbrook streets, just behind Safeway, and also a vacant lot in the neighbourhood.

Rupart Roopnarine, who has lived in the area for 40 years, said a lot has changed in that time.

"When I first lived in this area, you could have walked the street at 2 a.m. and nobody would bother you. You can't do that now," he said.

"Even eight years ago, I got robbed by five guys right outside here. What I think you need sometime, to walk on Sherbrook, is bulletproof vests."

There is no word on any arrests.

The alley that runs between Maryland and Sherbrook streets, behind Safeway, is blocked with police tape. (Meaghan Ketcheson/CBC)