Troy Police said 14-year-old Zaccai James was shot at around 11:30 p.m. Saturday, Aug. 27, as he stood outside of a home in the Lansingburgh neighborhood, near 6th Avenue and 103rd Street.
When officers arrived, they found the boy suffering from multiple gunshot wounds, police said.
He was taken to the hospital, where he later died from his injuries.
Investigators determined that James had been standing outside with a group of people when shots rang out. Police believe the group, or James specifically, may have been targeted.
Detectives and evidence technicians have pursued numerous leads and canvassed the area for additional witnesses, police said. No suspects had been arrested as of Tuesday, Aug. 30.
“Zaccai’s family and friends remain in our daily thoughts as they confront this sudden and unexpected loss,” Troy Police said in a statement.
Investigators are asking anyone with information or surveillance footage from the area to contact Troy Police at 518-270-4426.
James was set to begin his freshman year at Lansingburgh High School in Troy on Tuesday, Sept. 6, according to a statement from the Lansingburgh Central School District.
He had just bought new school clothes before the shooting and was looking forward to starting a new job in September, his mother, Doreen Davis, wrote on Facebook.
“I was so proud and excited for him!” Davis said.
In another post, the grieving mother begged anyone with information in her son’s killing to come forward.
“The no snitch mentality is for the uneducated, ignorant, immature, small minded, people!” Davis wrote.
“If anybody knows anything! SAY SOMETHING!”
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