Metropolis Desk-
At least four people have been killed and 28 wounded in a shooting at a “Sweet 16” birthday party in the United States, according to police and media reports.
The gun attack in the small town of Dadeville in the southern US state of Alabama took place late on Saturday night, authorities said on Sunday.
There was no official word on what led to the violence.
During two news conferences on Sunday, Sergeant Jeremy Burkett of the Alabama Law Enforcement Agency did not take questions. He did not say if a suspect was in custody or if investigators knew about any motivation. He did not provide the names of those killed.
“We’re going to continue to work in a very methodical way to go through this scene, to look at the facts, and ensure that justice is brought to bear for the families,” he said.
The Montgomery Advertiser newspaper reported that one of the four people killed during the violence was a high school football player who was among those attending his sister’s “Sweet 16” birthday party when a gunman opened fire.
The newspaper, quoting the victim’s grandmother, identified the slain teenager as Philstavious “Phil” Dowdell, whom she said was set to graduate in a matter of weeks and planned to attend Jacksonville State University on a football scholarship.
“He was a very, very humble child. Never messed with anybody. Always had a smile on his face,” Anette Allen told the newspaper, calling it “a million-dollar smile”.
Dowdell’s mother was among those hurt in the shooting.
“Everybody’s grieving,” Allen said.
