An 11-year-old boy has died after he was allegedly shot at a unit in Norwest in Sydney’s north-west earlier this week.
NSW Police said the boy, who had been in a critical condition since Monday, died at Westmead Children’s Hospital at about 8pm on Thursday, three days after the shooting.
Police were called to a unit on Fairway Drive at about 5pm on Monday following reports of a shooting. Officers found the boy with a gunshot wound to his face and neck.
NSW Ambulance paramedics treated him at the scene before he was taken to Westmead Children’s Hospital in a critical condition.
Five other people who were inside the home at the time were not injured.
Three 18-year-old men were arrested following the incident. Two were taken to The Hills police station and later released pending further inquiries.
The third man, Isaac Bechara, was charged with concealing a serious indictable offence. He appeared at Blacktown Local Court on Tuesday morning, where he made no application for bail. Bail was refused.
Police said on Tuesday that they were aware of the unit where the shooting occurred and had previously engaged with some of its occupants.
Detective Superintendent Naomi Moore said police were considering whether some people inside the unit had associations with organised crime, but said the shooting did not appear at that stage to be directly linked to current conflicts.
The boy was a member of Sydney’s Maronite community. Family members paid tribute to him following his death.
The death is a further development in an investigation that has already led to one person being charged. Police have not announced a conclusion about how the firearm came to be involved in the incident.
Australia By Aussie previously reported on the shooting and the NSW government’s response to the state’s firearms buyback scheme. The latest development is the boy’s death following his injuries.
Read our earlier report on the Norwest shooting and NSW gun buyback debate.
Source: The Guardian.
