Sheriff’s officials said Friday that a gunman shot a 12-year-old boy and wounded a man in a random attack inside a convenience store in South Florida.
A Broward County sheriff’s deputy said Darren Rosenthal, 29, shot a man sitting in a car outside a Dania Beach 7-Eleven around 11 p.m. Thursday. He then entered a suburban Fort Lauderdale store and killed the boy. Then he committed suicide.
The names of the boy and the injured have not been released. The person was taken to a hospital, but his condition was not disclosed.
“Detectives do not believe there is a connection between the gunman and the victim. It appears to be a random act. Sheriff spokesman Kerry Codd said at a news conference Friday. “There does not appear to be a connection between the two victims.”
Store employee Maximo Limas said that Rosenthal gave no warning before he started shooting.
The injured man “was resting in the car, minding his own business. Pow, shoot my neck,” Limas told Miami’s WFOR-TV. He added that the boy was also an innocent victim.
“The child wanted to buy ice cream. That’s all he did,” Leamas said.
Miami-Dade County court records show Rosenthal was arrested multiple times for drug and alcohol-related misdemeanors about eight years ago.
The investigation into the shooting is ongoing and detectives are asking anyone with information.