A middle school-aged boy was fatally shot in South Lebanon Township on Tuesday night, Feb. 15.
According to a Wednesday evening WGAL report by Barbara Barr, gunshots were heard coming from a parking lot in the vicinity of Vine Street and Park Avenue between 8:30 and 9 p.m. on Tuesday night.
WGAL reported that the boy was taken to Hershey Medical Center where he was pronounced dead from a gunshot wound.
Reports differ as to the boy’s age; WGAL reported the boy was 12 years old, while the Lebanon County District Attorney’s office said he was 13.
The Lebanon County District Attorney’s office confirmed the incident Wednesday evening shortly after WGAL’s report aired. According to the DA’s release, police initially responded to the scene after receiving calls of multiple gunshots in the area.
The shooter remains at large. The DA’s release states that Lebanon County Detective Bureau, the Office of the District Attorney, and the South Lebanon Township Police Department have a joint investigation underway.
A neighborhood resident was quoted in the WGAL report as having heard multiple gunshots and seeing a person running by and “sprinting through the yards.”
Barr reported that police were on scene through the early hours of the morning and into Wednesday, searching the neighborhood blocks as well as woods nearby.
Barr said that neighbors believe this may have been a random shooting and that the boy may not have been targeted, but that police would not confirm this.
According to a Lebanon Daily News report, a candlelight vigil was held Wednesday night for the victim, who has not been identified by police.
A press conference is scheduled for Thursday morning, Feb. 17, in the lobby of the Lebanon County Courthouse.
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This article was updated immediately after publication to include references to a release by the Lebanon County District Attorney’s office.
