Gary Police are investigating two separate shooting incidents early Sunday morning that killed a 10-year-old Chicago boy and left a 50-year-old man in critical condition.
Montana Weathers was pronounced dead at 1:43 a.m. at the Methodist Hospital Northlake emergency room, according to a Lake County Coroner’s release. The preliminary cause of death was listed as a gunshot wound; the release noted that the boy was at a family gathering for the July 4th holiday. A forensic autopsy is scheduled for Monday at the Lake County Forensic Science Center in Crown Point.
Around 12:49 a.m., police received a report of a gunshot victim at a residence in the 200 block of Chase Street, according to a Gary Police Department release on Facebook. While police were on their way, officers learned that the boy and a 50-year-old man had self-transported to Methodist Northlake with gunshot wounds.
The man was later transported to a Chicago-area hospital and remains in critical condition, police said.
The fatal shooting is being investigated by Detective Morgan Salazar with the Lake County Prosecutor’s Homicide Task Force. Anyone with information can call 219-755-3720.
About 15 minutes before — around 12:34 a.m. — police received multiple reports of shots fired in the area of 19th Avenue and Hanley Street. When police responded, they received a report that six gunshot victims had arrived at Methodist Northlake in a private vehicle.
The conditions of the victims are unknown. Police are investigating the circumstances around the earlier shooting. Anyone with information can call Detective Corporal Sean Melendez at 219-881-1209.
“The loss of a child is a heartbreaking tragedy that deeply impacts not only the victim’s loved ones but the entire community,” the department’s release stated. “Investigators are committed to pursuing those responsible and bringing justice to the victims and their families.”
