BRENTWOOD (WABC) -- Investigators are searching for clues after gunfire wounded a 13-year-old boy at a pickup basketball game in a Long Island park.
Suffolk County police say Wilson Batista Jr. suffered a gunshot wound to his head in the shooting just after 8:00 Monday night at Timberline Park in Brentwood.
Investigators said Batista was playing basketball with a group of friends when he was shot.
"Suddenly, four shots rang out, according to witnesses," explained Suffolk County police Detective Lt. Jack Fitzpatrick. He said the teen was sitting out a game on the side of the court when the shots were fired.
Neighbors ran to the basketball court to find the 13-year-old boy down on the ground and surrounded by friends.
Batista was rushed to the hospital with life-threatening injuries.
He is a 7th grade student at East Middle School in Brentwood. Counselors were on hand to help students cope.
School officials described Batista as funny and popular.
"He's a funny kid. A little bit of a prankster. Good sense of humor," said spokesman Rich Belyea.
Investigators don't know whether Wilson or one of his friends was the target, or whether the shooter simply aimed randomly at the court.
Fifteen-year-old Brian Garcia lives in the area. He says the park is usually the safest place around to play.
No arrests have been made. Police are asking anyone with information to come forward.
You can call Crime Stoppers at 1-800-220-TIPS or the Homicide Squad at 631-852-6392. All calls will be kept confidential.
MORE NEW YORK AND TRI-STATE AREA NEWS
USEFUL LINKS:
SEND TIP OR PHOTO || REPORT TYPO || GET WIDGET
EYEWITNESS TWITTER || FIND US ON FACEBOOK
local news, lauren defranco
Sponsored Content
- Get school closing info here!
- ACCUWEATHER: Blizzard warning in effect 1 min ago
- Photos: AccuWeather Maps: The latest information
- weather: Send weather photos, videos
- NYC trying to stay on top of the storm 8 min ago
- Storm 2 only making things worse in NJ 27 min ago
- Continental canceling Newark flights due to snow
- Colombian cocaine traffickers turn to heroin
- NY State Senate votes to expell Monserrate
- Paterson addresses rumors
1.

- ACCUWEATHER: Blizzard warning in effect
1 min ago
2.

- Quick update on the snow storm
50 min ago
3.

- NYC trying to stay on top of the storm
8 min ago
4.

- Storm 2 only making things worse in NJ
27 min ago
-
Most Popular
-
Most Viewed StoriesMost Viewed VideoMost Viewed Photos
ABC7 Everywhere
Wireless
Breaking news as it happens. Sign up now!
Visit our mobile site at 7togo.com.
Get our iPhone application.
Newsletters, Alerts, and RSS
Sign up for our newsletters to get news, weather and other alerts via email.
Get breaking news alerts on your desktop
With our RSS feeds, get real-time updates of 7online.com using your favorite news reader.
Blog
Contests, Promotions, and Registration
Check out our contests and promotions. There are always great opportunities to win!
Become a member to enter contests, comment on stories, receive newsletters, and more!
- 7online.com home
- Site Map
- RSS
- Advertise with Us
- Contact Us
- DTV Reports
- Technical Help
- ABC.com
- ABCNews.com
- Privacy Policy
- Safety Information for this site
- Terms of Use
- Copyright ©2010 ABC Inc., WABC-TV/DT New York, NY. All Rights Reserved.

