A 23-year-old man has been arrested and charged in connection with the murder of an 11-month girl in New York state.
Syracuse.com, which mainly covers news events in the New York city of the same name, reported that Chavez R. Ocasio was booked on the following charges: second-degree murder, second-degree criminal possession of a firearm, tampering with physical evidence and violation of parole, citing Onondaga County Justice Center records. Ocasio was booked into custody at 8 p.m. on Monday.
A law enforcement source told the website that the charges are connected to Ocasio's alleged role in the murder of 11-month-old Dior Harris. Harris was shot three times while in a car in the 300 block of Grant Avenue in Syracuse at around 7 p.m. on Sunday. She later died in hospital.
A 3-year-old girl and an 8-year-old girl were also shot, but look likely to survive.
Harris' mom, Desiree Seymore, and her cousin, Shakema Buckmon, were driving with their daughters when someone opened fire from a car going the other way. Neither of the adults were hit by bullets.
"They just started, 'pow, pow, pow,' just started shooting at my car, and then just drove away," Buckmon told the local television station.
Buckmon, who was driving, sped to a relative's house on the 100 block of Lincoln Avenue to get help.
Harris was rushed to Upstate University Hospital, where she died of her injuries.
"I tried to save her, I tried to get to the hospital as fast as I could, I tried, I tried but she had already passed before we could make it down the street," Buckmon said.
It is not clear what Ocasio's alleged role was in the murder or if there are other suspects involved.
A vigil was held on Monday night to remember Harris, who died only weeks before her first birthday on April 29. At the vigil, Buckmon said police told her an arrest was made in the case Monday evening.
"She was just a baby," said Seymore. "She was so strong. She didn't even cry when it happened, but we lost her."
Symone said Dior was loving, playful, and full of life, adding that whoever murdered her was a "coward."
On Monday, Syracuse Police Chief Kenton Buckner appealed for the public's help to solve the murder, but said he wasn't willing to share any leads on suspects.
Newsweek has contacted Seymour and Syracuse Police for comment.
