MIAMI (WSVN) - A 15-year-old boy is fighting for his life after he was shot while riding his bike over the weekend.
Friends and family could be seen going into Jackson Memorial’s Ryder Trauma Center where the victim is now in critical condition.
“He lived right down the street from one of my friends, and I would come over there every Sunday,” said Robert Malone, a mentor to the teen. “This Sunday, I was over there, and everybody saw him. I always pulled him to the side and talked to him about what’s going on in his life. This time, he was on a bike, and I just gestured to him and waved. Fifteen minutes later, he was shot down at the park.”
Investigators said the victim was riding his bicycle near Northwest 10th Avenue and 47th Terrace, Sunday, when an unknown vehicle approached him. Someone from inside the vehicle opened fire, striking the teen several times.
“I heard like seven, six shots. Then when I had came outside, I didn’t see no car, I didn’t see nothing,” said Trovaris Paris, “and then I saw him running, and he had collapsed by the black Jeep.”
Paris tried to help the victim until first responders arrived at the scene.
“I was shocked. It was like, I’m panicking,” said neighbor Trovaris Paris. “When I was trying to speak to him, he was out of it. That’s why, after that, I was trying to make the police, like, ‘Help him, help him, help him out.’ That’s when I guess they put him behind the rescue’s thing, and I guess that’s when they took him on.”
Police believe the teen may have been targeted.
“We know for a fact that he was riding his bicycle when an unknown vehicle drove by and shots were fired from that vehicle, specifically at this young man,” said Miami Police officer Michael Vega. “We don’t have too much violence in this area. We haven’t had any violence in the City of Miami of this magnitude, but it can happen anywhere at anytime.”
“They say he’s still in critical condition. I’m just hoping that he pulls through,” said Malone.
If you have any information on this shooting call Miami-Dade Crime Stoppers at 305-471-TIPS. Remember, you can always remain anonymous, and you may be eligible for a $1,000 reward.
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