According to officials, a 9-year-old kid was engaged in a shooting that murdered a 15-year-old girl in the southwest area of Edmondson Village on Saturday.
According to authorities, the youngster was among the children on a porch in the 600 block of Linnard Street.
According to authorities, the firearm in his possession went off at 8 p.m.
Multiple witnesses told investigators that the 9-year-old youngster was playing with a loaded pistol when it inadvertently fired, according to police.
According to investigators, the 9-year-old kid dropped the pistol and bolted after a bullet entered the revolver and injured 15-year-old Nykayia Strawder in the head.
Strawder was first reported to be 14 years old by police.
According to authorities, an ambulance transported the adolescent to a nearby hospital, where she was confirmed dead.
On Saturday night, police chief Michael Harrison told reporters that investigators were “working with many juvenile witnesses who all have parents and/or guardians we’re seeking to reach.”
According to police, they ran the serial number on the pistol and discovered it was registered to a lady who is connected to the youngster.
Authorities said the lady works as an armed security guard.
Dontay Jones, Strawder’s father, stated he was home at the time of the shooting.
Jones was with his wife and children when he heard a “loud muffling sound” coming from the front porch. He was unsure if the sound was a gunshot.
Jones went downstairs to check and saw Strawder bleeding “from her head, from the back of her skull, on the side.”
“I couldn’t tell because there was so much blood everywhere,” he said.
Jones said he wants the person who shot his daughter to know they “taken a very lovely angel away from the earth.”
“We’ll never be the same without her,” he remarked.
Donyette McCray, Strawder’s great aunt, told WJZ that there was animosity between the 9-year-old kid and Strawder’s brother before the shooting.
The two had been arguing before the 9-year-old youngster chose to show up outside of Strawder’s house with a rifle.
“Her brother had fought him twice before this,” McCray said.
In the wake of the horrific shooting, Strawder’s family is seeking justice.
“He needs to be held responsible for his conduct,” McCray added. “I don’t have my baby… she’ll never, ever come back.”
According to police records, Strawder is the sixth adolescent to be shot and murdered in Edmondson Village in the last year.
Investigators are collaborating closely with the State’s Attorney’s Office, and any charges linked to the incident are pending.
Near 6:30 p.m. on Tuesday, a vigil will be held for Strawder at the location where she was shot and died.