Police Hunt For Shooter Who Fired Into Watts Apartment, Injuring Teen And Girl, 9
WATTS (CBSLA.com) — Police are searching for a shooter who fired multiple shots into an apartment, injuring a 9-year-old girl and her 18-year-old aunt.
The shooter fired nearly a dozen shots into an apartment building on 106th Street and Central Avenue around 8 p.m. Sunday.
"All I heard was just the gunshots, that's what really scared me," said a neighbor who lives directly across from the apartment where the two victims were struck by gunfire.
"We were sitting in there watching the football game, and when the shots started firing and stuff I lay down on the couch and my son, he slid on the floor so he could shut the front door," she said.
A 9-year-old girl and her 18-year-old aunt were hit by gunfire. They were taken to UCLA Harbor Medical Center; their injuries were said to be non-life threatening, according to detectives.
A young boy was also carried from the scene, though police would not say if he was in the apartment at the time of the shooting.
The Los Angeles Police Department's Southeast Station's Gang Division is investigating the incident.
Authorities said the intended target was a young man sitting on the porch outside of the apartment when he was approached by the gunman and asked where he was from.
The shooting was reportedly sparked by the man's refusal to answer the gunman's question.
Detectives said the shooter was making every effort to fire into the apartment at the intended target.
CBS2's Dave Lopez said at least 11 bullet holes were visible outside the apartment, with their placement suggesting the shooter was running around the apartment and stopping to fire from different angles.
Two neighbors, including one whose door was also struck by gunfire, said they heard gunshots but did not see or hear the suspect.
A third said off-camera that she saw the suspect escape by sliding through a hole in the fence.
The investigation is ongoing.
