A 13-year-old boy was hit by a stray bullet on his way to pick up his siblings at a park in the Bronx on Monday evening, according to law enforcement sources and his relatives.
Two NYPD officers were also injured in a crash while heading to the scene, sources said.
The teen was grazed on the head by a bullet around 7 p.m. at NYCHA’s Morrisania Houses on East 169th Street near Park Avenue, authorities said.
He was on his way to pick up his two younger siblings, both under 4 years old, according to Joy, his cousin who is considered an aunt by the kids.
The teen said he was walking when he suddenly felt something warm on his face and a sharp pain. He realized he had been shot.
He was also supposed to pick up Joy’s son from the park, she said on Tuesday afternoon.
“He was going to pick up my son from the park,” Joy said. “He was playing in the park with another kid. He never made it to them.”
“They found him after he was shot,” she added. “It could have been my son because he was in the park.”
The boy, who did not seem to be the intended target, said he heard a loud bang while walking, sources said.
He felt something warm on his face and then a sharp pain, sources said.
He was taken to Lincoln Medical Center with non-life-threatening injuries.
“My nephew is okay,” the boy’s aunt said. “I’ve talked to him. The bullet just grazed the top of his head.”
“These kids don’t understand how dangerous the streets are,” she added. “They think guns are cool.”
An NYPD cruiser rushing to the scene crashed into a gate, injuring two officers with non-life-threatening injuries.
No arrests have been made regarding the shooting.
The police car was responding to the shooting when it swerved to avoid another vehicle and crashed into a gate about half a mile away on Webster Avenue near East 165th Street, cops said.
Both officers were taken to Lincoln Medical Center and are in stable condition.
This boy is the latest young victim in a wave of citywide violence that started earlier this month, which has resulted in two teenagers killed and at least six others wounded.