A 4-year-old boy who was shot dead during a California road rage shooting has been pictured as his parents mourn his loss.
Little Gor Adamyan was in the car with his parents, Meri Adamyan and Levon Tantushyan, while out grocery shopping in Lancaster Friday when they were shot at.
‘Now he’ll never know the experiences of school, the experiences of having friends. All that has been taken away in a moment of rage. He never even got to go to kindergarten,’ said Miguel Coronado, a family spokesman.
On Monday, 29-year-old Byron Burkhurt and 27-year-old Alexandria Gentile, were identified as suspects and arrested. Both were booked at the Los Angeles County Jail on suspicion of murder, the sheriff’s department said.
The shooting occurred when the family was suddenly cut off by another driver.
Police say the other driver then pursued the family through surface streets before finally pulling up alongside their car and firing inside.
Gor Adamyan shot dead during a California road rage shooting on Friday night in Lancaster, California
‘During the incident, the suspect driver cut them off and then began following them through several surface streets,’ the Los Angeles Sheriff’s Department said.
‘While being pursued by the suspects, the victim driver slowed his vehicle, at which time the suspect driver pulled up along the passenger side of the victim’s car and began shooting.’
The bullets hit Gor in the torso, while he was sitting in the back seat. His parents were not injured.
Those working in nearby businesses heard gunshot ring out and rushed to help but sadly the youngster died from his injuries on Friday night.
‘His father and mother, who were in the vehicle, immediately transported him to a local hospital where he was pronounced deceased,’ the sheriff’s office said.
‘On that fateful day, as Gor’s parents were en route to purchase groceries, an encounter with a suspect driver escalated into an unthinkable tragedy,’ a GoFundMe page read.
‘Gor Adamyan succumbed to his injuries on Friday night, just ten days before Christmas, leaving his family utterly devastated,’ the post read.
The shooting occurred when the family were suddenly cut off by another driver on Sierra Highway near East Avenue J in Lancaster
Coronado said the family ‘is asking for both the suspects to be incarcerated for the rest of their lives, no possibility of parole.’
‘From what they [the parents] told me, Gor was just a happy, regular little boy. He loved trucks, stuffed animals, just a very upbeat child who loved his mom and dad, loved his family,’ Coronado said.
Local politicians also denounced the boy’s death.
‘There is absolutely no excuse for this. It is just domestic terrorism at its worst,’ said Lancaster Mayor Rex Parris.
The suspects were quickly tracked down to a nearby hotel.
‘There was a dash cam that picked up part of the plate, and once we had part of the plate, we could track it, and we tracked it to a hotel.
‘We know where they’ve been, we know where they’re going, so when a crime is committed, we can go back in time and find out where they are,’ he explained of the city’s crime-fighting technology.
‘This young boy’s death is shocking. A family is now inexplicably left without a child that meant everything to them.
‘Our roadways are no place for this type of random and unacceptable violence. I want the suspects apprehended for this heinous murder to be prosecuted to the fullest extent of the law… we cannot tolerate acts of violence like this one,’ said Los Angeles County Supervisor Kathryn Barger.
At least 284 children 11-years-old or younger have been killed in shootings this year across the U.S., according to the Gun Violence Archive.