Boy killed in 'Bug N Out Lounge' shooting identified by police, suspect on the loose
WEST ALLIS, Wis. (CBS 58) -- Authorities identified the 12-year-old boy who was fatally shot at a 17-year-old's birthday party in a West Allis lounge on Saturday night.
On Monday afternoon, officials confirmed that the body of a boy found outside of Bug N Out Lounge was Ronnel Smith. He would have turned 13 in a week.
West Allis police said they immediately responded to multiple calls of possible gunshots fired near 56th Street and Lincoln Avenue at around 9 p.m. on Saturday.
They found two victims who had been shot. Twelve-year-old Ronnel Smith, who died at the scene, and a 17-year-old boy who was taken to a nearby hospital. He is expected to survive.
Smith's grandmother, Keda Sisson, told CBS 58 that a couple of high school kids had been bullying her grandson for a while on social media, attempting to rob his prescription glasses. She said that a fight broke out at the party and that's when shots were fired. Damein Shiabazz said two of his grandsons and a niece attended the party.
"They should be enjoying life," he said. "Now we gotta make plans for funerals." Shiabazz said he's tired of senseless violence that continues to affect close-knit families.
"Every time I turn around, there's a kid or adult getting shot at a party for no reason, and I don't even know what could a 12-year-old possibly do to get killed," he added.
The owner of Bug N Out Lounge, Amy Thompson, said she was there that night, along with the birthday girl's parents. She said the space on the second floor is often rented out for events, but she's never witnessed a shooting in her life.
"We don't have problems here, even the police, last night when they were here, said we're not a problem bar," she said.
Police said that as of Monday afternoon, the investigation remains ongoing and at the moment, nobody has been arrested in connection to the case.
According to the Gun Violence Archive, one child and four teenagers have now been killed in shootings across the state of Wisconsin so far this year.
This past week, nine homicides have been reported in the state.