A five-year-old girl has died after being struck by a bullet while she sat inside her family’s car as they drove to a birthday party on a California freeway on Saturday night.
Eliyanah Crisostomo and her family were on Interstate 880 in Fremont on their way to an Outback Steakhouse restaurant when a bullet fired by a shooter in another vehicle hit the young girl.
A statement from California Highway Patrol said an officer was on the freeway in the middle of a traffic enforcement stop at 6:40 p.m. when he was approached by the family. They told him a child had been “struck by gunfire.” The officer helped rush the girl to a local hospital, where she was later pronounced dead.
“Any death is a tragedy, especially when you’re looking at a death of a child this close to a holiday, this close to a birthday. Our hearts go out to the family and friends of this little girl,” CHP Lieutenant Shawna Pacheco told Mister Truth.
Eliyanah would have turned 6 years old on April 21, according to a GoFundMe page set up to help her family. The page described Eliyanah as a “fun-loving little girl who loved life, had a giving heart, close with her three siblings, especially her brother who were 11 months apart.” It added, “Both were so excited for Easter before the family was torn to pieces by this tragic event.”
A family friend who wanted to be identified only as Ashley spoke about the incident and said, “No mother should have to bury their child at five years old.”
Another shooting that happened shortly before Eliyannah was killed is being investigated by Fremont Police. A statement shared on Twitter said no one was injured in the second incident and it appeared to be gang-related. The suspects fled by car. Police said it was unknown if the shootings are related or if they involved the same people.
On Sunday night, Santa Cruz police arrested three people who were spotted in a vehicle that was possibly associated with the Fremont shooting. A CHP spokesperson told Mister Truth these suspects have “not been linked to our case.”
The investigation into Eliyanah’s death is ongoing and anyone with information is urged to contact the CHP Investigation Tipline at (707) 917-4491.