NY man arrested after allegedly pointing gun at head of 6-year-old dropping off candy
A Long Island man has been arrested for allegedly pointing a gun at the head of a 6-year-old child who mistakenly delivered a Halloween goody bag to his house.
According to the Nassau County Police Department, the incident occurred on Saturday when a family drove into the hamlet of Manhasset to deliver a bag of candy. Police say a local mother drove her 10-year-old daughter, two young sons and nephew to what she thought was the home of her daughter's friend, allowing the girl and one of her sons, 6, to approach the property.
The children rang the doorbell then left the bag of Halloween treats on the porch before returning to the car. Shortly after driving away from the house, the girl noticed that they may have stopped at the incorrect address and asked her mom to turn back.
Upon arriving back, the 6-year-old boy approached the porch to retrieve the bag they had left behind when the front door opened. Through the crack in the door, 43-year-old Michael Yifan Wen reportedly emerged with a black handgun, which he pointed at the little boy's head.
Local NBC news affiliate News 4 New York reported that the criminal complaint alleged Wen shouted "get the f*** off my property" at the child. Wen was later arrested without incident and charged with menacing 2nd degree and endangering the welfare of a child.
Attorney information for Wen was not immediately available at the time of writing. Wen will be arraigned on Sunday, Oct. 29, 2023, at First District Court, Hempstead.
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More wrong-place shootings
High-profile incidents of gun violence stemming from innocent mistakes have made the news repeatedly in the last year alone.
On April 13 of this year, 16-year-old Ralf Yarl rang the doorbell at the wrong house when he went to pick up his sibling in Kansas City. The man living there, Andrew Lester, was charged with shooting him in the forehead within seconds after opening the door.
On April 15, a 20-year-old woman named Kaylin Gillis was looking for a friend's house in upstate New York when she was fatally shot by a homeowner after the car she was riding in went to the wrong address by mistake.
And on April 18, two teen cheerleaders were shot after Heather Roth accidentally opened the wrong car door and got in outside a grocery store. After returning to the correct car, Roth rolled down the window to apologize but was approached by the other car's owner, who opened fire on the pair, injuring both.
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This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: New York man pointed gun at child delivering candy bag, police say
