"Make things right": Aniya Allen's grandfather calls for her shooter to surrender on what would've been her 9th birthday
MINNEAPOLIS — More than two years after an innocent girl lost her life in north Minneapolis, her grandfather has a message for her killer.
Family and loved ones of Aniya Allen released balloons at her grave site Tuesday evening to mark what would have been her ninth birthday.
A stray bullet hit and killed Allen, who was 6 at the time, inside her parents' car near the intersection of North 36th Street and Penn Avenue on May 18, 2023.
WCCO spoke Tuesday with her grandfather, community activist KG Wilson.
"You could turn yourself in today and make things right, and get this thing off of you and stop running and hiding," Wilson said. "And you who know about it, you could get this off of you by turning this individual in and saving some lives."
Allen was one of three children who were shot in the head in just a matter of weeks in Minneapolis in 2021. Ladavionne Garrett, Jr. was shot on April 30, 2021. Trinity Ottoson-Smith was shot on May 15, 2021, and died 12 days later.
Garrett is still recovering from his injuries. Dpree Robinson was sentenced in July of this year to 37 years in prison for Ottoson-Smith's murder.
Anyone with information on Garrett's or Allen's cases can submit an anonymous tip online to Crime Stoppers, or call 1-800-222-TIPS (8477).
NOTE: The video above is from May 18, 2023.
