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HIGHLAND, Calif. (AP) — Two men were arrested in the killing of a 4-year-old California boy who was hit by gunfire intended for someone else while playing with a stuffed animal in a relative's front yard, authorities said Friday.
Darron Daniels, 20, and Maurice Kelley, 25, were taken into custody for investigation of murder and attempted murder after Daniel Munoz was shot in the inland city of Highland, San Bernardino County sheriff's authorities said.
Investigators believe the men didn't mean to hit the boy and were aiming at two people in a white Toyota Camry spotted near the scene late Wednesday, said Adam Cervantes, a sheriff's deputy.
Authorities have not discussed a motive for the shooting and declined to provide additional information.
Daniels and Kelley are expected to appear in court on Monday. It was not immediately known if either man had a lawyer.
Highland, a city of 54,000 people in the foothills 60 miles east of Los Angeles, has been grappling with a rise in violent crime. Last year, authorities arrested more than 100 people in a crackdown on gangs in the city, the Los Angeles Times reported.
On Wednesday, Daniel was playing with a stuffed bear he called Superman while family members picked fruit and watered plants in the front yard, the newspaper said.
His mother, Yuliana Morales, had taken an elder sibling and cousins to an amusement park and promised the boy he could go next time, the Times said.
"It's my fault for leaving him here," she said.
Daniel was playing at the home of his grandmother and aunt Reyna Isabel Hernandez, who said she saw the boy fall face down after shots rang out. He was taken to a hospital, where he was pronounced dead.
Hernandez told The Sun newspaper she had seen the suspects in the neighborhood but didn't know them.
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