New York City police are searching for a suspect they say shot a 3-year-old girl in the shoulder while her father picked her up from a Brooklyn day care Friday.
The shooting took place around 6:00 p.m. outside of 127 Riverdale Ave. in Brooklyn, the New York Police Department (NYPD) Crime Stoppers said. At a press conference Friday night, NYPD Chief of Department Kenneth Corey told reporters that shots were fired while the father and daughter left the facility, striking the child in the shoulder, WNBC reported.
“I hear two shots and I see sparks fly, and then I run, because I don’t know which side it’s coming from,” witness Mavis Warner told WNBC. “Then I hear three more and we see the little girl crying and the father holding the little girl, and I saw the blood coming from her shoulder.”
Officers bandaged the wound, placed her in a patrol vehicle, and quickly transported her to Brookdale Hospital, Corey said, per WNBC. He added that she is in stable condition.
“Her father was not shot,” WABC noted. Police said they did not believe the father and daughter were intended targets.
No arrests have been made, and authorities are searching for a black man who sported a black hoodie with “WAVES” written on the back, black jeans, and a mask, according to WABC. He allegedly fled in a white BMW sedan driven by another suspect.
Corey pointed out that two other children in the city have been shot in recent months, per WNBC:
When do we come together as a community, and as a city, and say enough is enough? An 11-month-old child was shot two months ago. Last week, a 7-year-old child was shot. And tonight, a 3-year-old girl leaving a day care center with her dad was shot in broad daylight. Enough is enough.
He pleaded with community members for their assistance in bringing the gunman to justice.
“Someone knows him,” Corey said. “Help us catch him, before he shoots another child.”
Authorities urge anyone with information regarding the shooting to contact NYPD’s Crime Stoppers at 1-800-577-TIPS (8477).