Suspect charged in shooting of man and child in Bronx park

NEW YORK

Police say 27-year old Alexis Tatis surrendered Friday night.

He is charged with second-degree attempted murder and assault.

The shooting happened on East 180th Street & Daly Ave. in Vidalia Park in the West Farms section.

"Everybody just freaked out and started running," an eyewitness said.

That's how a peaceful night in a Bronx park erupted into a scene of chaos and panic.

Sabrina Mendez was in Vidalia Park with her niece and dozens of other people.

"And the next thing you know we heard three gunshots and we thought it was firecrackers. But then everybody started running and we even seen gun smoke," said Sabrina Mendez, an eyewitness.

Mendez watched as emergency workers loaded a little boy into an ambulance.

Police say the 3-year-old was shot in the arm.

A 34-year-old man was hit in the leg.

Both are in stable condition at St. Barnabas Hospital.

"The park was so packed with a lot of people. The people were screaming and running and ducking down. My niece was lost somewhere. We grabbed her. We found her. She was down on the floor. This was crazy," said Jennie Mendez, an eyewitness.

Investigators recovered numerous bullet casings at the scene. There is still no word on the motive for the shooting.

"My niece was in there in the crowd, playing in the crowd herself. It could have been her," an eyewitness said.

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