Innocent teen killed on basketball court by stray bullet in Queens, search for gunmen continues
JAMAICA, Queens (WABC) -- Police are searching for two suspects after a 14-year-old was shot in the neck and killed on a basketball court at a public housing complex in Queens.
Investigators released video of the two persons-of-interest.
Dozens of candles were placed at the basketball court at the Baisley Park Houses in Jamaica in honor of Aamir Griffin.
Griffin was playing basketball Saturday night, he had less than an hour left on his 9 p.m. curfew, when he was hit in the neck with a stray bullet, killing him right on the court.
Investigators confirm Griffin was not the intended target, and they are now searching for two men, who they say may be involved in the senseless shooting.
Ron Naclerio, the head coach at Cardozo High School ion Bayside, where Griffin was a freshman says Griffin had so much passion for basketball, and he would have made it to junior varsity, and eventually the varsity team. That hope is now gone.
"He was a sponge," Naclerio said.
"He was a great kid, positive energy. I've never seen him get into an argument, I've never seen him fight, I've never seen him do anything like that. Basketball, it's what he loved," a friend said.
Griffin's family is asking for their privacy.
On Monday, it was a difficult day for Griffin's classmates.
"These kids are probably missing school later today for a really wrong reason, to bury a teammate," Naclerio said.
Griffin's Instagram page is filled with videos of him playing the sport he loved.
"He was filled with a lot of jokes, he always used to joke around with me and stuff and just so sad to see someone like this go. He was a really good kid," said Yanni Mousios, a teammate.
Anyone with information in regard to this crime is asked to call the NYPD's Crime Stoppers Hotline at 1-800-577-TIPS (8477) or for Spanish, 1-888-57-PISTA (74782).
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