2 teen boys killed in separate Phoenix shootings over the weekend
May 14, 2023, 8:00 PM | Updated: May 15, 2023, 8:18 am
(Facebook Photo/Phoenix Police Department, File)
PHOENIX — Two teenage boys were killed in separate shootings in Phoenix over the weekend, authorities said.
Police responded to a shooting call Saturday at an apartment complex near 35th Avenue and McDowell Road around 11:45 p.m., the Phoenix Police Department said in a press release.
Matthew Ballesteros, 17, was found with gunshot wounds and taken to a hospital where he died.
Police said Ballesteros, the suspect and a witness were having a barbecue in the common area before the shooting happened.
The suspect is on the loose, and details about what led up to the shooting are still being investigated.
On Friday, police responded to a shooting call to a park around 8:45 p.m. near 16th Street and Union Hills Drive and found a 17-year-old with gunshot wounds, authorities said.
Hery Almeida-Garcia was taken to a hospital where he did not survive.
Police said Almeida-Garcia was with friends when they were confronted by an unknown suspect, who fled after shooting the teen. The suspect remains on the loose.
Anyone with information about the cases is asked to call the Phoenix Police Department at 602-262-6151 or, to remain anonymous, Silent Witness at 480-WITNESS (948-6377) or 480-TESTIGO (837-8446) for Spanish.