5-year-old child struck by stray bullet in Semmes shootout; suspects at large
A 5-year-old child was struck by a stray bullet after two men engaged in a shootout Sunday in Semmes, with police now searching for the two suspects.
Semmes police said Tuesday officers were called to a trailer park on Denmark Road on a report of two subjects exchanging gunshots.
When police arrived, the shooters had left the scene, but within moments a second call was received saying a young child had been hit by a bullet inside a nearby trailer. Officers found the child, a 5-year-old boy, who had been hit by a bullet fragment after a bullet entered the trailer.
The fragment caused injuries to the left side of the child’s face and eye area, police said, although they described the injuries as non-life-threatening.
He was transported to University Hospital for treatment and later transferred to the University of Alabama-Birmingham Medical Center for what was termed a secondary evaluation of his injuries.
Investigators, meanwhile, determined two vehicles had been struck by gunfire, as well as the trailer. Evidence led them to another trailer, where a search warrant was executed and additional evidence gathered.
By Tuesday, police had identified the two suspects as 21-year-old Antony Josue Mena Moron and 27-year-old Jesus Manuel Venegas Rodriguez.
Moron is believed to drive a white 2016 Chrysler 200 with an Alabama tag. Rodriguez is driving a black Kia sedan.
Both suspects are considered armed and dangerous.