Erie police recover stolen weapon after teen wounded in self-inflicted shooting Wednesday
An investigation by Erie police into the shooting of a teenage boy led to the recovery of a stolen gun on Wednesday afternoon.
Officers determined that the boy, 15, accidentally shot himself after finding the gun, Deputy Chief Rick Lorah said Thursday.
According to Lorah, Erie police learned of the shooting on Wednesday at about 3 p.m. after the boy arrived at Saint Vincent Hospital and was treated for a grazing wound to his groin and a gunshot wound to his ankle.
Further investigation determined that the shooting was self-inflicted, Lorah said. Police would later recover the gun, which was hidden in the 1700 block of Cherry Street, and they learned that the weapon was reported as stolen, he said.
Lorah said police obtained surveillance video that showed someone hiding the gun after the boy shot himself.
The incident remained under investigation Thursday.
The gun was the 10th that Erie police have recovered in their investigations so far this year and at least the third reported as stolen.
Two guns that police said were reported as stolen, an AR-15 rifle and a 9 mm handgun, were recovered on Monday night as officers were investigating a shooting at a West Eighth Street apartment building. Investigators said a shot fired from an upstairs apartment entered the downstairs apartment and nearly hit a 5-month-old child sleeping in a crib.
Two adults and two juveniles were charged in the incident.
4 charged after bullet nearly hits baby: Four charged, stolen guns recovered after shot fired in Erie apartment nearly hits baby
Erie police recovered 286 guns in 2021, according to Lt. Pete Mitchell, the city police bureau's criminal intelligence officer. There were 263 guns recovered in the city in 2020.
Erie police were also continuing their investigation on Thursday into a reported shooting on Tuesday night.
Officers responded to the area of East Seventh and Wallace streets on Tuesday at about 9:15 p.m. after receiving reports of shots fired and after an officer in the area heard a gunshot, Lorah said. As police arrived in the area they saw a male running from the area, he said.
Officers located the male at a nearby gas station and were told by the male that two unknown males wearing black clothing fired a gunshot at him and he ran off, Lorah said.
The male was not injured. Police had no suspects in the shooting Thursday.
Contact Tim Hahn at thahn@timesnews.com. Follow him on Twitter @ETNhahn.
This article originally appeared on Erie Times-News: Erie shootings: Teen wounded in self-inflicted shooting; stolen gun seized
