A New York man is arrested after shooting three teenage girls in a stolen Hyundai that belonged to his relative
A man who shot three teenage girls after finding them in his brother’s stolen car has been charged with attempted murder.
Michael Brown, 23, was taken into police custody after he allegedly fired shots into a Hyundai, leaving two of the teens seriously injured and one in critical condition.
There were seven people in the vehicle in Syracuse, New York, at the time of the shooting; three of them were hit when gunfire broke out.
A 16-year-old girl was shot in the arm and stomach; her condition is now in critical condition. Two 14-year-old girls were shot – one in the hip and the other in the leg – and are expected to survive.
According to Syracuse police, Brown is now charged with attempted murder, two counts of assault, three counts of reckless endangerment, criminal possession of a firearm and criminal use of a firearm.
A man who shot three teenage girls after finding them in his brother’s stolen car has been charged with attempted murder
There were seven people in the vehicle in Syracuse, New York, at the time of the shooting – three of whom were struck when gunfire broke out
Michael Brown, 23, was taken into police custody after he allegedly fired shots into a Hyundai, leaving two of the teens seriously injured and one in critical condition
The Hyundai the teens were hanging out in was stolen from the 1800 block of Grant Boulevard, although it is unclear if the young girls were the thieves.
According to a Nov. 5 news release from the Syracuse Police Department, officers responded to a report of Shot Spotter at Grant Boulevard and Pond Street at 10:47 p.m.
Shot Spotter is a gunshot detection system that uses acoustic sensors to detect and locate gunshots to alert law enforcement agencies to gunfire incidents so they can respond quickly.
The officers discovered traces of shots fired and several shell casings were found at the scene.
The police report stated, “Officers patrolling the area of Greenland Drive and Harold Street were stopped by the occupants of a Hyundai and reported that several people inside the car had been shot.
‘There were several juvenile occupants in the car, three of whom were shot.
“A 16-year-old female was shot in the arm and midsection, a 14-year-old female was shot in the hip and a 14-year-old female was shot in the leg.
‘Everyone has been taken to hospital. The 14-year-old victims are expected to survive, and the 16-year-old is in critical condition.
‘The investigation revealed the following. Earlier in the evening, the aforementioned Hyundai was stolen from the 1800 block of Grant Boulevard.
“The shooting suspect, Michael Brown, 23, is related to the stolen car victim and searched the area for the car,” the police report said.
The reported ‘relative’ who owned the vehicle was later identified by CNY Central as Brown’s brother.
Brown now faces charges of attempted murder, two counts of assault, three counts of reckless endangerment, criminal possession of a firearm and criminal use of a firearm, Syracuse police said.
The police report states, “Brown located the stolen vehicle with several juveniles inside. At some point during the interaction, Brown fired into the car, hitting three juveniles inside.
Compared to last year, Syracuse Police have seen a 63% increase in stolen vehicles. Police believe manufacturing defects in Kia and Hyundai models have contributed to this increase
The police report states, “Brown located the stolen vehicle with several juveniles inside. At some point during the interaction, Brown fired into the car, hitting three juveniles inside.
“After the shooting, Brown fled the scene. Brown was later found on Peters Street and taken into custody for this incident.”
Hyundai and Kia car models have regularly been victims of vehicle theft, especially in light of a recent Tiktok trend that showed users how to break into cars using common household items.
The models targeted included 2017-2020 Hyundai Elantras, 2015-2019 Hyundai Sonatas and 2020-2021 Hyundai Venues.
In April this year, tragedy struck when teenagers stole a Hyundai and crashed into a family’s car, killing their six-month-old son.
The boys, aged 14 and 17, each faced a single charge of criminal trespass over the incident, but police said those charges could be upgraded pending further investigation into the crash.
Police said the two boys were driving along West Washington Road in a stolen Hyundai sedan on April 16 around 5 p.m. when they sped through an intersection and collided with a pickup truck.
A 16-year-old girl was shot in the arm and stomach; her condition is now in critical condition. Two 14-year-old girls were shot – one in the hip and the other in the leg – and are expected to survive
Hyundai and Kia car models have regularly been victims of vehicle theft – especially in light of a recent Tiktok trend that showed users how to break into those cars using common household items
Compared to last year, Syracuse Police have seen a 63% increase in stolen vehicles. Police believe manufacturing defects in Kia and Hyundai models have contributed to this increase.
In October 2022, teenagers driving a stolen Kia were involved in a car crash that killed four teenagers and injured two others in Buffalo, New York.
Buffalo City police said the crash happened around 6:30 a.m. Monday after the car, a Kia Sportage, was stolen late Sunday night.
All five passengers in the car, in addition to the driver, were under the age of 19 and were thrown from the vehicle. The driver was not ejected.
Buffalo Police Chief Joseph Gramaglia told reporters Monday that he believed the teens were participating in the trend that encourages people to break into the vehicles.
The ‘Kia Boyz’ challenge that police were referring to only requires a USB cable and a screwdriver to hotwire Kia and Hyundai vehicles.