2-year-old hit by stray bullet at Utah day care; police say man was shooting birds nearby
Utah police have identified the man who allegedly shot the stray bullet that struck a 2-year-old boy in the head.
On Wednesday the Spanish Fork Police Department announced they located a person of interest who shot a .22 caliber air rifle near a fenced daycare located in West Spanish Fork, Utah, striking a toddler.
Police said the man was shooting at birds in the area west of the daycare when the child was injured.
The toddler remains at a local hospital "in stable condition and improving."
According to police, the person of interest, who will remain unidentified unless formally charged, is cooperating with authorities as the investigation into the case continues. When the investigation is concluded the case will be passed to prosecutors to decide if any charges are to be filed, police said.
On Monday, Spanish Forks police were contacted by a local police department about a 2-year-old admitted to Utah Valley Regional Medical Center with a small caliber bullet wound to the head.
Detectives learned that several children were playing in the vinyl-fenced area of a daycare with two adults when at one point a child appeared to stumble and bleed from the face, police said.
"The daycare notified the parents of the 2-year-old child who responded and took their child to the hospital for treatment," police said. "It was not until at the hospital that doctors discovered through scans that the child had a small caliber bullet lodged in its head."