8-year-old girl shot in the head after going to get ice cream, Illinois reports say

An 8-year-old girl died after being shot in the head outside her apartment, Illinois authorities say.

Chicago police said the shooting happened about 9:40 p.m. Saturday, Aug. 5.

The girl, identified as Sarabi Medina, had just gotten ice cream for her and her father before she was shot, according to WLS and WBBM.

She was among a group when the accused gunman approached them from across the street, police said. For unknown reasons, he shot Sarabi in the head, according to police.

Sarabi died after being taken to a hospital, police said.

“Before she could even have a chance to put her scooter up, this individual ran across the street, discharged that weapon. Now we have a child that’s lost,” community activist Andrew Holmes told WBBM.

The accused shooter was tackled by the girl’s father and shot in the face during the struggle, the Chicago Sun-Times reported.

Police said the suspect was hospitalized in critical condition. Charges are pending.

Sarabi was believed to be targeted in the shooting, police told WBBM.

A neighbor described Sarabi as an “innocent girl who did not deserve that.”

“She was sweet, she would just ride her scooter up and down the sidewalk smiling,” Destiny Hill told WFLD.

A day before the shooting, the accused gunman had confronted the girl about being too loud, neighbor and family friend Megan Kelley told the Sun-Times.

“Everybody in the community would just tell him they are just kids having fun playing, just let them,” said Kelley, who described Sarabi as “an absolutely amazing and beautiful little girl.”

Sarabi’s mother was previously killed in a 2019 shooting, the Sun-Times and WFLD reported.

“Something needs to be done. Something has to change,” Kelley told WFLD. “And just something so senseless like that cut her life short at 8 years old, it just doesn’t make sense.”

This story was originally published August 7, 2023 at 10:15 AM with the headline "8-year-old girl shot in the head after going to get ice cream, Illinois reports say."