The 12-year-old who died after being shot last week in Mattapan has been identified by Boston police nearly a week later.
Savian Ellis, 12, was found fatally wounded at a residence on Fessenden Street on Thursday, police said Wednesday. The Boston resident was pronounced dead at a local hospital.
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The shooting happened inside an apartment building, which friends said was the home of the child.
Hours after the shooting, Savian's older brother Walter Hendrick, 22, was arrested on gun charges: charged with improper storage of a firearm allowing potential access for a person under 18, unlawful possession of a firearm and unlawful possession of ammunition.
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A judge set a $2,500 cash bail for Hendrick when he was arraigned in Dorchester District Court Friday.
Officials have yet to say how Savian was shot, and police on Wednesday said that detectives were still investigating what happened. Anyone with information was asked to call 617-343-4470.
If you have been impacted by homicide, survivor outreach services are available. Contact the Louis D. Brown Peace Institute at 617-825-1917 Ext. 119 or visit the website LDBPeaceInstitute.org for more information.
Police have said that officers were called to a second-floor apartment about 2:05 p.m. and found the boy on the kitchen floor with an apparent gunshot wound to the chest. He was taken to Boston Medical Center and declared dead about 2:42 p.m. They said investigators found that Hendrick had a loaded firearm in the residence that was improperly stored.
At the time of the incident, police said, there were two children in the apartment — the 12-year-old victim as well as an 8-year-old — and Hendrick and others who lived at the house indicated he had possessed a semi-automatic gun and ammunition.
A discharged semi-automatic shell casing was found at the scene along with a semi-automatic firearm and a black fanny pack which Hendrick told investigators he kept the gun in, according to a police report. It said Hendrick told investigators in an interview that the gun was his, and that he does not have a valid license for the firearm.
The police report does not indicate who fired the gun.
An attorney representing Hendrick has said that he has never been arrested before and has a child on the way.
Friends of Savian have described him as energetic, fast and friendly. They say he should still be here.
"These kids deserve a future," said Johnae Johnson. "He deserves to be here right now, enjoying his summer. He wanted to work, have fun with her, they had plans. He should be here tonight. This doesn't make any sense to me."
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"This is his family," his attorney said. "This is something that will take time for all of them to process."
Boston Mayor Michelle Wu has said that, "for a child of this age being lost to gun violence is a nightmare," and Boston Police Commissioner Michael Cox urged residents to turn in any illegal guns they have in their home in light of the shooting.
