4-Year-Old Boy Grazed By Bullet Inside Long Beach Apartment
LONG BEACH, N.Y. (CBSNewYork/AP) -- Police in Long Beach, Long Island were searching Friday night for a shooter who left a 4-year-old child injured inside an apartment.
As TV 10/55 Long Island Bureau Chief Richard Rose reported, police said the child was struck by a stray bullet as a result of a quarrel between two men outside a housing complex.
Dozens of Long Beach City Police officers patrolled the Channel Park Homes complex Friday night, trying to figure out who fired the shot that inured the boy inside 21 Oak Ct., in an area where many children play.
The boy was playing on the ground-floor of his apartment when the shots rang out around 1:20 p.m., police said.
"Shots had been fired. At least one round went through the door of an apartment, and either the round, or debris from the round, struck a small child inside. That child was transported to Nassau University Medical Center, and we are being told they are non-life-threatening injuries," said Long Beach Detectives Commanding Officer Stefan Chernaski.
Sgt. Richard DePalma told WCBS 880's Sophia Hall it is believed the shots came from one of two men who were quarreling in a nearby alley.
Long Beach police said they were actively working leads to try to find the shooter.
Family members inside the apartment would not talk to TV 10/55, except to say the little boy would be all right. A family pastor who did not want to speak on camera said the child was extremely lucky, because the bullet only grazed the child's head.
Most residents were too terrified to even talk to Rose at all, saying they feared retaliation from the men involved in the shooting. But one father of several young children said he is fed up with the gang activity around the complex.
"I think it's ridiculous what happened – I really do," said David Stockdale of Long Beach, "and something needs to be done."
The little boy was taken to Nassau University Medical Center in East Meadow, where was treated for his injuries.
"It's a tragic incident, what happened. It could have been a lot more tragic," Sgt. DePalma said.
Police were asking for the public's help in identifying the shooter. Stockdale called for any witnesses to come forward.
"Can't keep blaming the police," he said. "It starts with the community. We need to start opening our mouths and doing something around here."
Police said they will welcome anonymous tips.
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