Child of good Samaritan shot outside DeKalb Kroger

DEKALB COUNTY, Ga. — Police are investigating the shooting of a child outside a DeKalb County supermarket.

Investigators told Channel 2 Action News the shooting happened at the Kroger store on North Hairston Road in Stone Mountain about 1 p.m.

DeKalb County Police Chief Cedric Alexander said the incident began at a nearby bank when a good Samaritan witnessed someone being robbed and stepped in to intervene.

Alexander said the suspected robber then confronted the good Samaritan again outside the Kroger store.

“During that time the suspect pulled out a weapon and fired into the vehicle where the good Samaritan’s 2-year-old child was sitting,” Alexander said.

The suspect fired at least eight to 10 shots into the car then drove off, Alexander said.

“Point blank. Just stood there on foot, not in a vehicle or anything, just shot,” one witness said.

The child, a 2-year-old boy, was shot in the abdomen and taken to Children’s Healthcare of Atlanta at Eggleston in stable condition.

“You could hear people saying, ‘Check the baby, check the baby,” another witness said.

Before paramedics arrived, someone carried the child into the store and laid him on a checkout counter where a worker from the pharmacy offered aid.

"They were actually laying on the conveyer belt and luckily the pharmacy there were' people assisting and putting pressure over the wound,” a witness at the scene said.

The good Samaritan was not hurt.

“He’s very, very upset. His wife is at the hospital with the child. He appears to be a very soft spoken, very kind man and very tearful right now too,” Alexander said.

Police said they are interviewing a number of witnesses.

They are looking at video and hope to identify the shooter soon.

At last check, the boy was in stable condition.

WSBTV