UNION CITY (KRON) – A stunned and emotionally broken group of family and friends sharing a private moment at the scene of a double homicide.
“It’s very somber, really sad. A lot of crying. People are just upset.”
Several neighbors in Union City reported gunshots at Searles Elementary School just before 1:30 a.m.
“We thought they were actually coming from behind the house,” a neighbor said. “It turns out they were in the front of the house, but heard anywhere from 15 to 20 gunshots.”
Union City police say the victims were 11 and 14-year-old boys.
The New Haven Unified School District said one was a district student — the other a former student.
A mother says her young son once attended class with one of the boys.
“It was a sixth grader that used to go to Searles Elementary and also a freshman in high school,” she said.
Investigators say the boys were parked in a school parking lot, sitting in a van when gunmen shot at them.
One victim died on scene — the other on the way to the hospital.
“At this time, we don’t know exactly what led up to this shooting — we don’t have any witnesses,” Lt. Steve Mendez said. “We don’t know exactly what they were doing in the parking lot at the school at the time.”
Police say they have not ruled out that this case may be gang-related.
One neighbor says he saw a car speeding away after the shooting.
Union City council member Jaime Patino lives closeby and says the sound of sirens woke him up.
“We need to find these people — the persons or people that did this,” Patino said. “Get them off the street.”
“People are guessing that maybe its gang-related or maybe its this, but nobody really knows,” the mother said.
“These are the first homicides reported in Union City this year.
“Like, how do you just kill kids?”
Police say, although at this time there does not seem to be a connection, investigators are looking into whether or not this case is related to another shooting incident Wednesday, where two men were shot, but survived.