May 21, 2008 10:17 pm US/Central
Young Boy Hit By Stray Bullet While In Joliet Home
JOLIET, Ill. (CBS) ―
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A 7-year-old boy was shot in the chest while sitting on the sofa of his Joliet apartment with his mother. An apparent gang fight broke out on the building's porch the boy was hit by a stray bullet.
CBS
A child was hit by a stray bullet Wednesday evening while sitting on the couch with his mother in the 300 block of Water Street in Joliet.
CBS 2 West Suburban Bureau Chief Mike Puccinelli reports a manhunt is underway and police say they have two persons of interest. They were canvassing the area Wednesday night searching for the young men.
The apparent gang shooting sent three people to area hospitals, including the young boy.
"In the apartment of 310 Water Street, a young boy was on the couch and was struck in the chest," said Chief Fred Hayes of the Joliet Police Department.
Two bullet holes in the front window of that apartment tell the story. A gunman fired at least seven shots and was aiming at two brothers who were standing on the porch.
Witnesses say the violence erupted when four gang-bangers approached the two young men.
"An argument ensued between the two groups and one of the individuals that approached the two brothers on the porch produced a handgun," Hayes said.
Both brothers were hit.
"One brother, 23 years of age, received a gunshot wound to the stomach. The other brother, 18 years of age, received two gunshot wounds, one to the left arm and one to the left knee."
The child's wound appeared to be the worst, leaving him in critical condition.
Neighbor Alecia Crittenden said that she spoke to the boy just 20 minutes before he was shot. She'd left for the store and had promised to bring him back a piece of candy.
"I had the candy but when I came home he wasn't here," Crittenden said, crying. "I have his candy. I'm hoping he's going to come home so I can give him his candy."
The boy was taken to a Joliet hospital before he was transferred by helicopter to Loyola University Hospital in Maywood.
The gang members fled east following the shooting. The man who fired the shots was described as a black man in his 20s. He was approximately 5-foot-11 and weighed about 180 pounds. He had a cornrow hairstyle and was wearing a black T-shirt and black pants.
Anyone with information about this shooting is asked to call detectives at (815) 724-3020 or anonymously call CrimeStoppers at (800) 323-6734.
The STNG Wire contributed to this report.
(© MMIX, CBS Broadcasting Inc. All Rights Reserved.)
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