NYPD releases images of suspects in shooting of 5-year-old girl in the Bronx
NEW YORK -- Police have identified two men involved in a shooting in the Bronx that left a 5-year-old girl with a gunshot wound to the back.
It was just one of several shootings that impacted dozens of people across the city over the weekend. In all, seven people were victims of gunfire in the Bronx.
CBS New York is learning that 5-year-old Zamaiya is improving at Montefiore Hospital, with her family by her side.
"I visited that little girl. And to see what she and her family were going through was not only heartbreaking, it was infuriating," Interim NYPD Commissioner Edward Caban said.
In his first few days in his new role, Caban has said he's determined to hold those accountable who shot the 5-year-old while she was sitting in the back of a car on Sunday.
"We promised that we would never rest until her shooter was found and held accountable," Caban said.
That car was parked outside a vigil on East 214th Street near Holland Avenue, after the little girl's 26-year-old neighbor was gunned down in the same location the day before.
"He lost half his life. The 26-year-old, he was a good kid. And the 5-year-old, she is just starting. So it's not easy. I'm telling you it's not easy living in a neighborhood where there's a lot of violence," neighbor Miguel Vargas said.
After analyzing surveillance video, the NYPD said it believes the gunshot that hit 5-year-old Zamaiya was in response to the backfire of a car that drove by the vigil.
Police have now identified two men they say were involved in the shooting as 26-year-old Curtis White and 25-year-old Austin Morrishow, both with criminal histories involving weapons, according to the NYPD.
"These two suspects are no strangers to the NYPD. It has been proven time and time again, that when you add repeat violent offenders together with illegal guns, you get a very dangerous and so often deadly combination," Caban said.
"Forty eight hours later, we have two individuals identified in the shooting, and the criminal justice system will now begin to take its course," Caban added.
From Upper Manhattan, where a 15-year-old was killed, to the Bronx, where a 12-year-old girl was injured, the NYPD said it is continuing to deploy more officers to combat the violence.
"Fourteen percent of all the shootings this year are under the age of 18, so youth violence is a concern," NYPD Chief of Crime Control Strategies Michael Lipetri said.
"We say public safety is a shared responsibility. We work so hard with our stakeholders, our partners, our faith-based organizations, and we're trying to focus a lot of that on our youth," Caban said.
The NYPD says this summer it is looking to serve 1,000 kids in its Youth Employment Program, 1,700 kids in its Youth Police Academy, and 2,000 kids for its Explorers program.
Outside organizations like B.R.A.G -- Bronx Rises Against Gun Violence -- say their programs target high-risk youth.
"A group of messengers, they work in communities that are identified as high violence and mediate violence and so that there is no retaliation," B.R.A.G. director Yadira Moncion said. "We're praying it's not a bad summer, but the reality is right now that violence is prevailing in our communities."
Anyone with any information is asked to call the NYPD's Crime Stoppers hotline at 1-800-577-TIPS (8477), or for Spanish, 1-888-57-PISTA (74782). You can also submit a tip via their website or via DM on Twitter, @NYPDTips. All calls are kept confidential.
