A 13-year-old boy died after he was shot during a carjacking in Northwest D.C. on Saturday, police say. The victim of the carjacking was described as an off-duty federal security officer.
Vernard Toney Jr., of Southeast D.C., was the child who died.
Toney was shot in the 600 block of D Street NW, near 7th Street, in the Penn Quarter area, the Metropolitan Police Department said. Officers responded at about 10:10 p.m. Toney was taken to a hospital in critical condition. In an update Sunday, police said he died of his injuries.
According to the initial investigation, the off-duty officer was sitting in a white Toyota Highlander when two juveniles demanded that he get out. One of the juveniles was "holding his hand in his front waistband pocket, as if he had a handgun," a statement by police said.
“As the victim was getting out of the car, he produced a handgun and shot one of the suspects," the statement said.
Toney was shot, and the other young person ran.
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Police said the off-duty officer was in his car before his work shift, that he legally owned his gun and that he is cooperating with the investigation. It wasn't immediately clear for which agency he works. It also was unclear if he was in uniform at the time.
The off-duty officer's gun was the only gun recovered from the scene.
Police are still searching for the other young person.
The scene of the shooting is just blocks from Capital One Arena, where the Washington Wizards were playing their season home opener.
Two sources familiar with the investigation say that Toney was the child arrested in May in connection with a string of armed carjackings in Southeast D.C. He was 12 at the time.
According to statistics from D.C. police, there have been 821 carjackings so far this year. Of the 134 people arrested, 84 have been juveniles.
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