RICHMOND, Va. (AP) – Two boys were killed and two men were seriously injured in a shooting at a convenience store in Richmond on Friday night.
Richmond police who responded to a report of shots fired at the OMG Convenience Store found four people with life-threatening gunshot wounds. The victims were taken to a local hospital where two boys - ages 9 and 14 -died. Police did not immediately release the names of the victims. The two men were in stable condition.
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The Richmond Times-Dispatch reports that the 9-year-old was attempting to unlock a car door when he was shot.
“This type of act cannot stand in Richmond,” police Chief Gerald Smith said during a news conference Saturday. “Once again the pattern continues. Our young people are falling victim to random gunshot violence over and over again.”
Smith said he will start a task force of officers to investigate the shooting and others, as well as repeated offenders in the city.
Smith and Mayor Levar Stoney asked witnesses to come forward to help police with their investigation.
The boys who died were not related to one another. Smith wouldn’t say if the adult victims were related to the children. He also would not say if the children were random victims or if they had been targeted. Police are reviewing surveillance video of the event.
“We’ve been here one too many times, particularly when it comes to a child,” Stoney said.