Boy, 16, shot to death in front of father while trying to sell Xbox in Indiana
GARY, Indiana -- A 16-year-old boy was shot and killed in front of his own father while trying to sell his Xbox Wednesday night in Gary, police said.
Gary police said the shooting occurred at about 6:05 p.m. near 51st Avenue and Maryland Street. Johnny Peluyera, 16, from Merrillville, Indiana, was driven to the area by his father to meet people he met on the online sales app Offerup in order to sell his Xbox.
Police said he met two people at abandoned homes around Gary. When one of the men took out a semi-automatic handgun from his waist-band, police said Johnny then turned to run back to the car where his father was waiting and was shot in the back. He died just minutes later.
"My son is gone," said Kelly Arroyo, the victim's mother. "My son is never coming back."
In the end, the suspects didn't even get the Xbox.
"The emptiness that is in my heart and my stomach and my soul and my body is almost unbearable," Arroyo said.
Gary police said they believe two men, described to be in their early teens to late 20s, are known in the area where the teenager was shot and killed. One suspect was wearing a black hoodie and the other wore a gray hoodie and both wore basketball-style shorts, police said.
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The boy's father was not injured in the shooting.
"They killed my son over nothing. They didn't even get the gaming system. They didn't even get the Xbox so why did they have to shoot him?" Arroyo said.
"I hope you feel the pain that I feel right now," she added. "I want you to live with this the rest of your life."
Anyone with information on the shooting is asked to contact Detective Mike Equihua of the Lake/Gary Metro Homicide Unit at 219-755-3852 or 866-CRIME-GP.
