12-year-old killed in funeral procession crash before shooting breaks out, Ohio cops say

A 12-year-old boy was killed and a 6-year-old was injured during a funeral procession crash that was followed with gunfire moments after, Ohio cops say.

Akron Mayor Dan Horrigan said he was “devastated” to learn of the incident, which occurred Thursday, Oct. 6, on S. Arlington Street in Akron.

The 12-year-old involved in the crash died at Akron Children’s Hospital, according to WOIO. Horrigan said the 6-year-old is in critical condition.

“There are no words which could adequately express the depth of this loss,” Horrigan said in a statement. “My heart breaks for the families and friends of these two young children.”

Police said the procession was for the funeral of a 17-year-old who recently died from a drug overdose, WJW reported.

The mother of one of the boys was driving a Chrysler 200, which collided with a Chevy Impala, WKYC reported. One of the children was ejected from the Chrysler, police told the station, and the other was partially ejected.

Witnesses said people “were hanging out of the window” of the car before the crash, WJW reported, citing police.

Police said the driver of the Impala fled on foot and has not been apprehended, the Akron Beacon Journal reported.

“We believe one of the cars may have been operating in some type of reckless fashion,” Akron Police Lt. Michael Miller told WKYC. “One of the cars may have tried to make a turn when the collision occurred, and the children were impacted by that.”

Police said that “as a direct result of the deadly crash,” an argument led to shots being fired, WOIO reported. A 19-year-old showed up at an Akron hospital with non-life threatening injuries after being shot, police told the station.

There was a second shooting two blocks away, but no one was struck, officials say.

“Everybody was shouting ‘get down’ and were screaming,” nearby resident Andy Benson told the Beacon Journal. “It was nuts.”

Miller described the incident as “mayhem,” according to WKYC.

“They were en route to memorialize and bury someone they love… The family of that young man and during this incident, another young man lost his life, and it could not be worse, more tragic for not only this family, but this community as well,” Miller said in an interview with WJW.

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