A 12-year-old boy, identified as Jacob Freytas, the son of a police sergeant, was fatally shot in the Bronx on Saturday evening, becoming an unintended victim of a street fight. The incident occurred shortly before 5 p.m. on Elliott Place near the Grand Concourse.
Security video shows Freytas, a resident of Mount Eden, outside a bodega, preparing to buy a ball. As he exits the store, a brawl erupts on the street. The video captures Freytas getting on his bicycle to ride away, but he then stops, appears to observe the commotion, and runs back into the bodega clutching his chest. Harrowing footage shows him collapsing inside the store as others watch in distress.
Freytas was struck by a stray bullet in the chest and transported to NYC Health and Hospitals/Lincoln, where he was pronounced dead. His father, a police sergeant, was reportedly in Connecticut at the time of the shooting.
During the same altercation, two other men were injured. A 34-year-old sustained a gunshot wound to his left foot, and a 25-year-old was shot in the buttocks. Both were reported to be in stable condition.
Sources indicate that up to six men were involved in the fight, though the number of individuals who discharged firearms was not immediately clear. The New York Police Department has stated that no arrests have been made and the investigation is ongoing. Jacob Freytas' uncle described him as a respectful and good kid who will be missed.