An emotional mother has criticized gun violence in New York City after her 14-year-old daughter was struck by a stray bullet on Thanksgiving while on her way to pick up brown sugar in the Bronx for the family meal. .
“It’s out of control,” the victim’s mother told the New York Post in an interview on Friday. “It’s every day. Every day you hear about something happening.”
Police said that on Thursday, in broad daylight, a 14-year-old girl was shot around 2:20 p.m. near East 225th Street and Schieffelin Avenue, across the street from NYCHA’s Edenwald Houses.
Police believe the girl was an innocent bystander and that the shooter, who is still on the run, had been targeting someone else.
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The “Police Line: Do Not Cross NYPD” sign is seen on a street in New York, on October 25, 2022.
(Beata Zawrzel/NurPhoto via Getty Images)
Police said the shooting took place near the Edenwald Playground on Schieffelin Avenue, near East 225th Street.
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The victim’s mother, who did not wish to be identified, told the Post that her 16-year-old daughter and son had been sent to the store to find ingredients for a holiday sweet potato pie. Shortly after leaving home, the woman’s son called in a panic and said that his sister had been shot in the leg.
“They literally walked out of the house, less than five minutes,” the woman said.
The boy managed to help his injured sister into a nearby building before police and EMS were called to attend to her. When his mother arrived, the victim was already being treated.
“I was crying. I tried to get to her but they were already working on her leg,” her mother told the Post. “I was able to touch her hand, rub her head, her hair, her face to comfort her.”
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A New York Police Department (NYPD) vehicle.
(Michael Nagle/Bloomberg via Getty Images)
The teen was taken to Jacobi Medical Center and later released, according to the Post.
The distraught mother said her family was shocked by the assault.
“It happened one day when the family was together to help comfort her. She was surrounded by love,” the woman said. “I want whoever did this to pay, but God is in control. If you don’t repent, you will pay one day.”
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The NYPD and members of an FBI task force have reportedly opened an investigation into the shooting.
Authorities did not have any information on a suspect, and it is unclear who the shooter was targeting, the Post reported.
