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Two young cousins injured in DeKalb County apartment shooting
Two young children are recovering at a hospital after an overnight shooting at a DeKalb County apartment complex. The family has now identified the two children as cousins, ages 6 and 7. One of their fathers, who was in the apartment at the time, describes the scary moments bullets began to fly through the walls of the Bouldercrest Road apartment.
DEKALB COUNTY, Ga. - Two young children are recovering at a hospital after a shooting at a DeKalb County apartment complex early Thursday morning.
The family identified the victims as cousins, 6-year-old Justin and 7-year-old Mia. A family member says his son and niece are going to be OK.
He said bullets started flying through their apartment windows and door overnight striking the young children. He says that is when he grabbed a gun and fired back.
"I didn’t know it was coming into our house until I saw the bullets going through the wall," said Jordan Smith, father of 6-year-old Justin.
Smith says around 2 a.m. Thursday, his unit at Artesian East Village Apartments on Bouldercrest Road came under fire, and he quickly responded.
"I grabbed the gun out of my girl’s bag, and I fired shots to the window to let them know, like we are armed in here and don’t try to come in," Smith said.
Six-year-old Justin was shot in his side and 7-year-old Mia needed surgery after being hit in the leg, but both should be alright.
"I’m really angry, but I’m just happy everybody is alive, and we able to be here talking about it today, and nobody is dead," Smith said.
The family identified the two cousins shot at a Bouldercrest apartments as 6-year-old Justin and 7-year-old Mia. (Supplied)
DeKalb County investigators swarmed the area overnight to try to piece together what happened, but a motive is not known.
A neighbor who did not want to be identified says she heard the shots and screaming.
"All I heard was, ‘What did you do? What did you do? We got to get out of here. We got to get out of here.’ And then more crying and screaming," the woman said. "We called the authorities."
Smith says he is not sure why they were targeted; he just wants investigators to make an arrest.
"I’m hoping that they are found because if they don’t, they could come back," Smith said. "They came specifically to this house. They didn’t shoot anybody else’s house. They didn’t shoot any other windows, only here."
Smith says he talked to his son a little earlier, and he cannot wait to come home.
The family asks anyone who knows anything to call DeKalb County Police Department.