11-year-old girl on way home from buying milk killed in drive-by shooting, NY cops say

UPDATE: Two people have been arrested in connection with the shooting, according to the Syracuse Police Department. Ra’sean Patterson, 18, and Dahviere Griswold, 20, are each charged with second-degree murder, attempted second-degree murder and second-degree criminal possession of a weapon.

The original story is below.

An 11-year-old girl was killed in a drive-by shooting as she walked home from a convenience store with a gallon of milk, according to the mayor of Syracuse, New York.

“We have a mother up at the hospital right now who just lost her 11-year-old daughter and you’re going to have a school full of children tomorrow without their classmate because she walked a block up the street for some milk for her family,” Mayor Ben Walsh said in a statement Jan. 16, the night of the shooting. “It’s senseless and it’s just brutal.”

The girl was shot just before 7:45 p.m. by a person police say was firing shots at a 19-year-old man, Syracuse Police Chief Joe Cecile told Syracuse.com. Police believe the 19-year-old was the intended target.

The man was also struck, and both he and the girl were taken to a local hospital, the outlet reported. The girl was pronounced dead, and the 19-year-old is expected to survive, according to the outlet.

Authorities later identified the girl as Brexialee Torres-Ortiz, according to The New York Times.

Photographs from the scene of the shooting showed a gallon of milk spilled on its side, the outlet reported.

“My niece had a whole life she was just starting to live,” her aunt, Nelly Nel, wrote on Facebook. “She only went to get milk at the store and never made it back.”

Torres-Ortiz was a fifth-grade class president at a STEM middle school, where she was in the high honors program, Cnycentral.com reported. She also loved to dance, according to the outlet.

A teacher at the school wrote on Facebook that he felt for his students who were mourning Torres-Ortiz at such a young age.

“We remember her smile, her energy, and most of all how much she loved her school friends,” wrote Stephen White, who is identified as a physical education teacher on his profile.

Another teacher wrote on Facebook that she was “an amazing student” and was only starting to discover who she was.

“She was sassy but sweet,” wrote India Jenkins. “And loved by many. She didn’t deserve this fate.”

Authorities are still searching for the shooter, and Cecile has asked members of the public for help submitting tips and sharing any information they have about the shooting, according to The New York Times.

The Syracuse Police Department did not respond to a request for information from McClatchy News.

This story was originally published January 17, 2023 at 6:40 PM.