UPDATE:
Police announced on Friday that a teenager has been arrested in the shooting, and the person shot was a juvenile.
ORIGINAL STORY:
INDIANAPOLIS — A juvenile male is in critical condition after being shot on the near east side of Indianapolis, according to the Indianapolis Metropolitan Police Department.
The shooting took place shortly after 1:30 p.m. Thursday in the area of East 19th Street and North Rural Street.
According to IMPD, officers were already in the area, along with an ATF Agent with the Indiana Crime Guns Task Force conducting an investigation into recent violent criminal activity.
It was while they were in the area that they observed the shooting, according to police.
Officers found an injured juvenile inside a vehicle. Also inside that vehicle was a toddler, IMPD said. The toddler was not harmed. The man was taken to the hospital in critical condition with at least one gunshot wound.
IMPD said officers were able to get the child to safety and notified the appropriate agencies for assistance.
Police said they took into custody two suspects “close by” following a pursuit and said detectives were “confident” the person or persons responsible were accounted for, but noted the investigation continued.
“One thing I would like to say is, I do think the detectives and agent from the ATF from the Indiana Crime Guns Task Force being in this area indicates the focus that IMPD has on very specific places where crime’s occurring and the people involved,” said IMPD Lt. Shane Foley.
“Unfortunately, even being in the area they weren’t able to prevent this from occurring. However, they were able to make a quick apprehension on the persons believed to be involved,” said Foley.
Members of IMPD’s Victim Assistance Unit also responded to the scene.
“I don’t know that any family members are on scene but it’s helpful that Victim Assistance does show up they can communicate to the family what to expect next,” said Foley.
“The victim in this case was transported to the hospital so typically the family will go there. It’s also helpful that if people in the community have questions, they can speak with someone who’s not a law enforcement officer, somebody who’s not in uniform, and Victim Assistance works with detectives on a regular basis so they can provide that information.”
Anyone with information is asked to call IMPD’s Homicide Office or Crime Stoppers at 317-262-TIPS.
This was not the only shooting that took place in Indianapolis Thursday. Police said they were called to the city’s south side at 4:15 a.m. after a woman was hit by a stray bullet. She was taken to the hospital in critical condition. And at about 2:30 p.m., a woman was shot and killed inside a vehicle on the northwest side.
NOTE: A previous version of this story referred to the male shot as a man. The story has been updated after police on Friday noted the victim is a juvenile.
