BUFFALO, N.Y. (AP) — A 3-year-old boy riding a tricycle was fatally shot and his 7-year-old sister was grazed by gunfire at a family gathering in Buffalo, officials said Saturday.
The children were not targeted in the Friday night shooting on a city street, Mayor Byron Brown said. Police believe there was a single shooter and were searching for a suspect Saturday.
“A 3-year-old riding his tricycle, having fun with members of his family on a hot summer night, his 7-year-old big sister right by his side, and out of nowhere gunfire erupts. And the children are struck by gunfire,” Brown said at a news conference.
Officers rushed the unidentified boy in a police car to a nearby hospital, where he was declared dead. The girl’s injuries were not life-threatening, Police Commissioner Joseph Gramaglia said. He declined to provide further details of the shooting and said the investigation was continuing.
The police chief said investigators recovered a gun Friday night and were testing it, but no further information about the weapon was made available. Brown and other officials at the news conference decried the number of illegal weapons on city streets.
“I’m heartbroken today,” said Brown, who added that the children’s mother was active in the community.
