MIAMI-DADE COUNTY, Fla. – A South Florida family is pleading with someone to come forward with information that can help detectives arrest whoever shot a 2-year-old boy last week in southwest Miami-Dade.
"It's like a missing piece -- something missing. It's been real, real hard," the victim's sister, Lashelle Williams, said.
During a news conference Thursday, Williams describes what it's been like since her little brother, Carnell Williams-Thomas, was gunned down at their public housing complex.
"Every day he rode (his) bike, scooter -- any outside activity he loved," she said.
Relatives said Carnell was riding his scooter just after 6 p.m. last Friday outside the Arthur Mays Villas at 21461 SW 114th Court when he was struck by a bullet.
"Next thing you know, there was a pop, and she heard him say, 'Mommy.' She grabbed him to save her son," Carnell's grandmother, Barbara Williams, said.
Police said they found Dorothy Williams holding her son when they arrived at the scene.
Carnell was later pronounced dead at Kendall Regional Medical Center.
"This is what they give you when your child in trouble. They give you this bear and tell you to hold on like you're holding your child. And I haven't let go since. I can't let go," Dorothy Williams said.
Since the shooting, the community has come together in prayer and local leaders held a town hall meeting, asking for answers.
"A lot of tips are coming in. Some are credible, and they're being looked into," Miami-Dade police Detective Michael Parmenter said.
But police say they need more information, and hope a $30,000 reward will move someone to speak up.
"It shouldn't take the $30,000, folks. That child was worth so much more," Miami-Dade police Director Juan Perez said.
Anyone with information about the shooting is asked to call Miami-Dade Crime Stoppers at 305-471-TIPS.
"Somebody knows something," Dorothy Williams said. "I need you to say something. They took my baby."