A teenage boy is in critical condition after being shot in the head on Chicago’s South Side Thursday afternoon.
The incident unfolded around 2:50 p.m. on the 8200 block of South Coles Avenue in the South Chicago neighborhood, according to police reports.
A resident living close to the scene recounted to ABC7 that he was startled by the sudden burst of gunshots.
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When officers arrived, they found a 13-year-old victim suffering from a head wound caused by a gunshot.
The boy was immediately transported to Comer Children’s Hospital, where he remains in critical condition, as confirmed by the Chicago Police Department.
The neighbor further mentioned hearing a rapid succession of shots fired near his home, underscoring the severity of the situation.
The shooting left the block draped in crime tape and neighbors with unanswered questions.
“A little overwhelmed to hear what happened,” nearby resident Ronya Fulgiam said. “It’s sad. I’m hurt. You know, I feel for whoever the family is.”
Nearby resident Nathaniel King says he heard a barrage of gunfire.
“But I didn’t know it was right, right here next to my door, and I didn’t know that, and that was like, that was shocking to me,” King said.
King says the boy was found unresponsive in this gangway next to his home.
“He didn’t look like no… gang member or something like that. He didn’t look like that,” King said. He looked like somebody was just getting out of school, seriously.”
The shooting happened steps from a CPS charter high school, but it doesn’t appear the victim was old enough to be a student there. He was found around dismissal time.
Police have not said what led to the gunfire, adding to the mystery for neighbors on the block with young children.
“13 years old, that’s a baby,” Fulgiam said.
Police spent much of the evening Thursday on that block and were seen going door to door for surveillance video.
No further information was available as Chicago police continue to investigate.
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