VERO BEACH, Fla. — A 17-year-old has been arrested in connection with a shooting that injured a juvenile at a Vero Beach laundromat parking lot on Sunday evening.
The suspect was taken into custody early Tuesday morning by Vero Beach Police Department's Critical Response Team and charged with aggravated battery with a firearm and shooting a deadly missile into an occupied vehicle.
The shooting occurred around 6:30 p.m. Sunday at Sunshine Laundry, located at 1405 16th Street. Two witnesses described the person they saw. They said he was approaching a vehicle on the west end of the parking lot and fire multiple rounds into the occupied car.
The shooter fled on foot south of the laundromat before witnesses lost sight of him. The vehicle that was shot at fled westbound on 16th Street from the scene.
Officers secured the area and conducted a K-9 track for the suspected shooter while issuing a be-on-the-lookout alert for the fleeing vehicle. Police found four spent bullet casings in the parking lot where the incident occurred.
About 20 minutes after the initial response, the Indian River County Sheriff's Office located the vehicle with three occupants in the 4400 block of 35th Avenue. Shortly after, police were notified that a victim had been brought to Cleveland Clinic in Vero Beach with a non-life-threatening gunshot wound to the lower leg.
Investigators determined the vehicle at the laundromat was occupied by one adult driver and three juvenile passengers. After the shooting, one juvenile victim was dropped off at a family member's residence and then taken to the hospital.
Through interviews, surveillance video and witness identification, investigators identified the suspect. The Indian River County State Attorney's office and a judge approved the arrest warrant.
The 17-year-old was arrested at a residence near the laundromat around 4 a.m Tuesday and was transported to the Department of Juvenile Justice in Fort Pierce.
This is an ongoing investigation. Stay with WPTV for updates.
