MIAMI-DADE COUNTY, Fla. – The face of 17-year old Clinton Young is now printed across homicide flyers detectives are using to solve his murder.
Young’s grieving uncle tells Local 10 News that the teenager was with two friends Wednesday night just before 9 p.m. when the gunfire happened. It was a drive-by shooting, police say, the sound of which could be heard from blocks away.
When Miami-Dade County police arrived at the Goulds neighborhood on Southwest 115th Avenue near 224th Street, they found two injured 16-year olds and Young dead from his gunshot wounds.
“This is the scenario that I find myself in this morning, and it’s not one that I relish,” said Rev. Anthony Ancrum Sr., Young’s uncle. “But I can rest assure that Rev. Anthony L. Ancrum Sr. is here to tell you this was a good kid. These kids were not gangbangers, they were not going around creating havoc in the community.”
The two other teens were taken to Kendall Regional Medical Center, each with a gunshot wound in their leg, police said. They were still receiving treatment Thursday afternoon but are expected to survive. Both attend and play football at Southridge Senior High School.
Ancrum said his nephew had just gotten off work at a fast-food restaurant and was stopping by his aunt’s house in Goulds when he was killed.
“When you get off work from Church’s Chicken, I don’t think you expect to die,” Ancrum said. “They just happen to be in front of someone’s house chillin’ and some clowns decided they wanted to shoot them.”
As the medical examiner’s office removed Young’s body, officers went door to door searching for clues.
Young’s family has no answers as to why the crime happened. They’re pushing for the community to speak up now.
“It’s not snitching when your grandma is dead,” Ancrum said. “It’s not snitching when your nephew is dead. It’s not snitching when you’re cleaning up blood off the porch and the sidewalk.”
Anyone with information is urged to contact Miami-Dade Crime Stoppers at 305-471-8477. A reward of up to $5,000 is being offered for information that leads to an arrest, and tips can be made anonymously.