Key Takeaways
- 7-month-old Kaori Patterson-Moore was fatally struck by a stray bullet around 1 p.m. near Moore Street and Humboldt Street.
- Police said two men on a moped opened fire. One suspect is in custody on unrelated charges, and another is still being sought.
- A $5,000 reward has been announced for information leading to an arrest as the investigation continues.
A citywide manhunt is underway after a 7-month-old girl was fatally struck by a stray bullet while sitting in her stroller on a busy Brooklyn street.
Police said the infant, Kaori Patterson-Moore, was near Moore Street and Humboldt Street in East Williamsburg shortly after 1 p.m. on Wednesday (April 1) when gunfire erupted. During a press conference, NYPD Commissioner Jessica Tisch said the shooting is believed to be “gang-motivated,” with the child an “unintended target.”
Tisch said two male suspects were riding a moped when the rear passenger fired at least two rounds toward a group that included adults, children and multiple strollers nearby.
According to CBS News, surveillance footage shows the suspects fleeing the scene on a moped before crashing into an oncoming car just blocks away. Both individuals were thrown from the vehicle, with the rear passenger landing so hard that his shoes flew off. Tisch shared that a 911 call about the crash came in around 1:25 p.m., and one of the men was taken to a nearby hospital. Investigators later determined he fits the description of the shooter and is now in custody on an unrelated domestic violence-related robbery investigation while they work to determine his connection to the shooting.
The second suspect remains at large and is described as wearing light gray pants, a white T-shirt and a black surgical mask. He was last seen fleeing toward the Marcy Houses and is the subject of what Tisch described as a “massive NYPD manhunt.” The moped was later recovered about five blocks from the scene.
Mother and Mayor Zohran Mamdani speak out after baby killed in Brooklyn shooting
The child’s mother, Lianna Charles-Moore, shared devastating details with the New York Post about the moment everything changed. “We thought it was fireworks, but my son jumped out of the stroller, and I picked him up and carried him,” she said. “I was hugging him, and then when I looked to my left, my daughter was just there, lying there. She was shot in the head. She was just bleeding. It was just too much.”
She added, “My daughter was innocent. She didn’t deserve that. We were just going outside to go get her a few things, and my son a few things.”
At the press conference, New York Mayor Zohran Mamdani addressed the tragedy. “A life that had barely begun was taken in an instant,” he said, per CBS News. “There are no words that can mend the heartbreak this family is feeling now, no declaration strong enough to lift the grief they are now forced to carry, no embrace wide enough to heal the hole that has been left in their lives. We cannot accept this as normal in our city. We cannot grow numb to this pain.”
On X, Mamdani also wrote: “A 7-month-old baby was shot and killed today in Brooklyn — an unthinkable loss. I’m grateful for the hospital staff who did everything they could and the NYPD for their ongoing work to find those responsible for this heinous murder. We cannot accept this violence as normal. Too many families have suffered this pain.”
As the search continues, community leaders are stepping in to help. According to ABC7 Eyewitness News, Rev. Kevin McCall and local clergy announced a $5,000 reward on Thursday morning for information leading to an arrest.
For Kaori’s family, the focus remains on justice. “I want justice,” her mother told the New York Post.