A 9-year-old boy was shot and killed while asleep in his bed after a car drove by and opened fire near the boy’s residence in Albany, Georgia.
According to the Albany Police Department, the incident occurred at around 11 p.m. local time on Sunday.
Officers with the Albany Police Department were called to a residence in the 1500 block of West Gordon Avenue after reports of a shooting, the department said in a Facebook post.
Police said that when officers arrived to the residence, they found a 9-year-old boy had suffered a gunshot wound to the head. The Albany Police Department did not provide any further information on the identity of the child due to his age.
According to the Albany Police Department, the unidentified 9-year-old boy was asleep in his bed when a vehicle “passing through the area opened fire.” Police did not provide any further information on the vehicle that passed through the area or any possible suspects involved in the fatal shooting.
The Albany Police Department said that the boy was pronounced dead at the scene.
The Albany Police Department has asked the public to come forward with any information on the suspects involved in the shooting. Anyone with information on the incident was asked to call the Albany Police Department’s Crimestoppers line at 229-436-TIPS or the department directly at 229-431-2100.
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In a subsequent Facebook post, the Albany Police Department offered condolences for the family of the 9-year-old boy.
“The Albany Police Department is saddened by the tragic loss this city experienced last night. Our thoughts and prayers go out to the family,” the post said.
Newsweek reached out to the Albany Police Department for further comment but did not receive a response in time for publication.
Shortly after the police reported the shooting, numerous community members commented on the post expressing sadness for the boy and his family.
“So much senseless death. It needs to stop now!! Prayers for his family and this crime ridden place we live in,” one Facebook user commented.
“Prayers for this baby boy’s family,” another Facebook user wrote. “So sad. This world is so cruel. Innocent lives being taking for no reason. Prayers for his family. My heart aches for his family.”
A similar incident occurred in Kansas City, Missouri in June last year when a 4-year-old boy was fatally shot while he was sleeping inside his home.
“People at the scene said that they were inside the apartment asleep when they heard gunfire from outside, and the victim was hit by the gunfire,” the Kansas City Police Department said in a press release from June 2020.
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