An investigation is underway after a teen was shot Friday night in Lawrence, Massachusetts.
Lawrence police say a 16-year-old girl was shot on the 300 block of High Street just after 9 p.m.
Police say the victim, who has not been identified, was a passenger in a black BMW that drove to a High Street address where a large group was fighting in the street. One of the occupants of the BMW exited the vehicle and shot several rounds in the air. A person then exited the High Street address and shot several rounds into the car, one of which struck the victim.
The girl was taken to Lawrence General Hospital with a gunshot wound before being transported to a hospital in Boston where she remains. There is no update on her condition at this time.
During the shooting, a bullet flew into a nearby apartment but luckily no one inside the home was hurt.
“And I heard some gunshots go off and as far as I know the police were here,” said Randy Curry, who was at his High Street home when the chaos broke out around him. “Sounded like a girl that was yelling. She was screaming out as if she was being attacked."
It's unclear at this time if officials have identified the suspect who shot the teen, though Lawrence police say they expect a "speedy resolution."
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Authorities say they did, however, recover a firearm that was thrown from the BMW enroute to taking the victim to the hospital.
Detectives say they arrested the driver of the BMW, identified as 20-year-old Christian Figueroa, on an active warrant for several firearms-related charges in an unrelated shooting.
The Lawrence neighborhood is on edge after the shooting. One neighbor tells NBC10 Boston that she overheard the gunshots and called 911. She says this is not the first time this has happened in the neighborhood.
“I did. I called 911,” she said. “I have two kids. They were sleeping in different bedrooms. So I ran to one bedroom and I run to another one and take them to the bathroom because I didn’t know where to go.”
The woman says she has called 911 for a shooting at least three times in the last several months.
“I’m a full-time worker,” the woman said. “I have three kids. I am trying to do my best. My only mistake is just living in Lawrence.”
The shooting is being actively investigated by Lawrence police and the Essex County District Attorney's Office.
