MEMPHIS, Tenn. — A 13-year-old is recovering after police say he was shot in the face while riding a moped along the 2300 block of Airways Boulevard. It happened around 12:30 Tuesday morning.
Police say the boy was able to make it back to his house and was then rushed to the hospital.
“I got up at like 2 a.m. and I saw the ambulance and fire department out here and crime scene tape, police and I was wondering what happened,” said neighbor Robert Bowden.
Bowden says he was worried after seeing flashing lights at his neighbor’s house on Johanna Drive Tuesday morning and even more worried after hearing what happened.
“It’s kind of hard to stomach,” he said.
Police say the 13-year-old was riding his moped around 12:30 a.m. near Dixie Queen when he heard two gunshots. He told police he then felt a sharp pain on his face where a bullet had hit him.
Police say after the victim was shot in the face, he still made it home on his moped about a mile away.
He was brought from there to the hospital in critical condition.
“I think it’s very sad,” said one woman WREG spoke with where it took place. “It’s scary really.”
Police say the teen’s since been upgraded and is expected to be okay.
“It’s family-oriented right here,” said Bowden. “Everybody in this neighborhood knows everybody, so it’s kind of heartbreaking because they want to know how the little boy’s doing.”
Bowden says he often sees his young neighbor out on the moped in the neighborhood but is concerned why he was out at that time of day.
“Why would a 13-year-old be out at midnight at Dixie Queen? That’s the question I want to know.”
The person who answered the door at the victim’s house on Tuesday said he didn’t have any information about the incident. This, as the community hopes the boy makes a full recovery.
“I just hope and pray for his family,” said Bowden.
No one is in custody at this time. If you have any information that could help lead to an arrest, you’re asked to call Crime Stoppers at 528-CASH.
