Saturday evening, an exchange of fire in Abymes (Guadeloupe) left a collateral victim: a 4-year-old child hit by four bullets. Transported to hospital, his vital prognosis is no longer in jeopardy. The incident is part of a series of gun violence that worries local authorities.
Saturday evening, around 10 p.m., a new act of gun violence shook a district of Abymes in Guadeloupe.
While he was with his parents, a 4-year-old child was injured by four bullets during a shooting. The public prosecutor of Pointe-à-Pitre, Caroline Calbo, confirmed to AFP on Sunday that the child’s life was no longer in danger after his transport to hospital. “The little one is a collateral victim, he was transported to hospital and his vital prognosis is no longer in danger.“However, this incident highlights an increasingly worrying climate of violence on the island.
The investigation was entrusted to the criminal brigade to shed light on the circumstances of this shooting. Caroline Calbo expressed her concern about this new episode of armed violence, denouncing “uninhibited use“firearms in the department.
This tragedy is reminiscent of another shooting that occurred the day before, where students were targeted in the parking lot of the Baie-Mahault shopping center, injuring two of them, one seriously.
The prosecutor urged society to be concerned about the proliferation of weapons and their access, recalling that the victims were not linked to criminal cases. “In these last two cases, we are dealing with people without history, who do not belong to delinquent circles, we must collectively question the presence of weapons in our society“, underlined Caroline Calbo.
The archipelago is facing an alarming increase in armed violence.
Since the start of the year, 25 murders have been committed, including 19 by firearm. The prosecutor compared these figures to those of cities like Marseille, noting that in proportion to its population, Guadeloupe experiences higher crime.